So Much for a Winter Wonderland
by Ihockey87
Summary: An undercover operation goes wrong and Gibbs is in trouble. Can two unlikely heroes save him from fate? KIBBS in later chapters!
1. Prologue I: Gibbs

**Disclaimer: **I don't own NCIS; that pretty much covers it.

**Pairings: **Slight Kibbs (maybe more in later chapters).

**A/N:** This is my first attempt at a fan fic. The story is based on one crazy dream I had after viewing too many NCIS reruns in a row.

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**Prologue I- Gibbs**

Gibbs awoke to complete silence. Blinking a few times, he tried to move. Almost instantly pain engulfed his body. He tasted blood and groaned. 'Come on, pull it together Gibbs,' he thought to himself. Taking in his surroundings very slowly, he realized he was in the woods. From as far as he could tell, no one was around. Gibbs thought he saw a trail running parallel to where he was sitting, but he wanted to get closer to have a look. Trying to move, Gibbs was only met by the restraints that held him in place. Looking down at his chest, he saw thick rope. It dawned on him when he remembered how the undercover operation went bad. Someone had broken into his house; he had tried to fight them but it was three against one. Gibbs moaned again. "I'm tied to a tree in the middle of no where," the gray haired man whispered to no one in particular. He half expected to hear someone answer him.

The wind began to pick up and the temperature began to drop. The sun was falling fast. Gibbs shivered through his light black jacket as snow dropped from the sky. He could hear the frozen precipitation fall onto the leaves around him. Gibbs was fighting to stay awake. "Help!" he yelled, hoping someone would answer. But when the only sound he heard was the wind ruffling the remaining leaves on the trees, he knew he was in trouble.


	2. Prologue II: Hassler Household

**Prologue II-The Hassler Household**

"But why can't I come with you? You know how much I love the doctor conferences," Trisha said to her 'dad'.

He eyed her suspiciously. "If I remember correctly, and _I do_, you hated the last one I dragged you to. You wanting to come this time has nothing to do with the fact that the conference is being held in the Bahamas, does it?" He glanced at Trisha, whom he had adopted shortly after last year's Christmas. Things just weren't working out; he was never home and he planned to give her up when he got back from the Bahamas. 'If she only knew,' he thought to himself as he walked past the little girl with blonde hair that was pulled loosely into a pony tail. She had bangs and blue eyes.

Trisha smiled at him, "Well of course not! What made you think that? I mean, come on. The sun, the sand, the surf," she said dreamily. "Of course I'd rather stay here in Pennsylvania in the middle of winter," the little girl pouted.

Her best friend, Rochelle, came up beside her, laughing. "Gimme a break, Trish. You want to go with him to look for cute boys! We all know it!"

Trisha rolled her eyes at Rochelle, who was staying over at the house while Trisha's 'dad' was on his trip. "Ewww! Boys are gross. Besides… they smell."

The man shook his head and frowned. "I'll only be gone for a week, Trish. Now listen, I've got to get going. It's starting to snow. There's enough food here for an entire army. Make sure you take the dog out, and don't forget to feed the cat. If you two are going snowmobiling, make sure you take the walkie talkies with you just in case. Wear your helmets and take your backpacks. And don't forget, if you need anything you can always call the neighbors," he said as he walked towards the door. She looked at him impatiently. It wasn't the first time she had heard this. "And if anyone comes to the house---"

Trisha cut him off, "Yea. I'll invite them in and we can have a big party. I know the drill. It's not like this is the first time I'll be here alone. And I'm not really alone, anyway. Rochelle is here, too," she said, gesturing towards her friend. "I'm sure we'll find enough to do to keep us busy. You don't have to worry about us."

For only being 12, Trisha was extremely mature. Most of her friends were much older than she, except for Rochelle, who was also 12 years old. The two shared an interest in everything; they played on the same sports teams and were in the same classes at school. They both loved snowmobiling and were quite skilled at it. In fact, they had met while taking safety classes when they were just 8 years old. The two became instant friends and were inseparable. Trisha considered Rochelle a sister, and Rochelle's family considered Trisha as one of their own.

He bent and gave Trisha a quick hug. "Be good," he said. He gave Rochelle a hug and said, "And that goes for you too, Chelle. No big parties!" With that he picked up his belongings and headed towards his forest green Ford Explorer. He climbed in, warmed up the SUV and headed out, honking as he drove down the long driveway and towards the airport.

Trisha and Rochelle, standing at the windows, waved at the red tail lights that illuminated the snow covered driveway until they were out of sight.

"Well, now what? You wanna watch a movie or something?" Rochelle asked Trisha. She had plopped herself down on the couch and was petting the family's dog, a golden retriever.

Trisha walked over to the big brown hutch and got the TV remote that was hidden where the dog couldn't get it. "Yea sure, just let me watch the weather forecast real quick. Last I heard it's gonna snow a good 6 inches tonight," she said as she stared at the plasma screen.

"Holy crap!" Chelle exclaimed. "They're calling for all that snow and I didn't even know? Where have I been?" she quipped. "You do know what this means, don't you?"

Trisha was beaming. "There's going to be more than enough fresh powder to try out those 2 new sleds in the shed!" she exclaimed to Chelle. Bringing herself back to reality, Trish turned to her friend, "You know, we ought to get some sleep if we're gonna be out all day tomorrow. It's already 11PM. I figure if we get up around 7:30 that should give us enough time to get everything ready and have a path dug to the shed by 10AM. At the latest."

Rochelle nodded in agreement. "I'm up for it. The more time to ride, the better."

With that, they both headed off to dream of the day to come. Neither one of them had any idea what they would find in the woods tomorrow.

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**A/N:** I know this installment was a little dry, but I had to include it. It sets up the plot and gives the necessary background info on the other characters. It will get better... or at least I hope you think so!


	3. Chapter 1: Abby Finds Blood

**Chapter 1 - NCISHQ - Washington, DC, 6:30AM**

"Kate, any luck with getting a hold of Gibbs?" Tony asked as he sleepily came over to her desk and handed her a coffee.

"No, none whatsoever. He's not answering his cell. I've been trying since yesterday morning, and all I've gotten is his voicemail and…" her voice trailed off. She looked at the cup on her desk and avoided Tony's eyes.

Tony frowned. "Hey, I'm sure he's fine. Besides, he probably just got really involved," he pondered, trying to rationalize why Gibbs hadn't checked in at all. "I mean, what would those guys think if Gibbs spent all of his time on his cell?"

"Yeah Kate, Tony's right," McGee agreed from his desk.

Kate looked from one agent to the other. "I don't know. Something just doesn't seemright. We all agreed on the check-in calls before Gibbs left. He even suggested it. He wouldn't do it… leave me…. Errrr, I mean us here worrying like this. What if something happened and he _can't_ call us?"

"Whoa, Kate! Gibbs has been on rougher undercover ops. He's a big boy; he can take care of himself," Tony said reassuringly, although he too was starting to wonder just what was up.

Kate's phone rang just then, making everyone jump. She picked it up. "Gibbs?" Kate asked.

"Sorry Kate, it's Abby." Kate's face fell and Tony knew it wasn't their boss. "Kate, I have this feeling that something's hinky. McGee told me last night that Gibbs hadn't checked in, and I had this weird dream. Well, more of a nightmare, really. I'm telling you, I don't like it."

Kate nodded. "I know, Abby, I was just telling Tim and Tony the same thing…."

Abby cut her off, "Yea, but listen. I came in really early and I traced the GPS on Gibbs' cell. The signal was stationary."

"Abby, what are you saying? Where's the phone?" Kate asked worriedly.

"Kate, the coordinates led to Gibbs' house. I was just there. The living room was a mess. It looks like there was a struggle, and there was some blood on the coffee table. I got a sample and I'm running it now," and with that, Abby hung up.

From Kate's look, McGee knew something was wrong. He went to Kate who was standing now, staring at her phone. "Kate…what, what's wrong? What happened?"

Looking at McGee, Kate said in a quiet voice, "We need to go to the lab. Now."

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**A/N: **Sorry to leave a sort of cliffhanger - expect an update soon! Thanks to everyone who has read it thus far.


	4. Chapter 2: Morning Comes

**Chapter 2 - Hassler Home, 7:30AM**

'Beep, beep, beep, beep SLAM!' Trisha turned and hit the snooze button on the alarm. She lay in bed for a few minutes, half debating if she really felt like moving. Shaking the sleepiness from her head, she reached over and turned off her electric blanket and then the alarm clock.

"Hey Trisha! You awake yet?" Rochelle yelled from the guest room down the hall. She had been up for at least 45 minutes. Bounding down the hall and dressed to go out into the snow, Rochelle went flying into her best friend's room. "Hey, lets get a move on, I'm not getting any younger here!" she said as she ducked to avoid a stuffed animal that Trisha hurled at her head. Rochelle had always been a morning person.

On the other hand, Trisha often wanted to kill whoever even looked at her before 10AM. "Ughhhh…. whose idea was this to get up so early?" she moaned.

Rochelle smirked. "Actually it was yours. Now, come on! I already have everything packed - walkie talkies, weather radio, extra batteries, first aid kit, blankets, extra gloves and hats, lunch, you know - the works. I even fed the pets and took the dog out!" she bragged.

Trisha looked at her. "All right, all right. Give me 20 minutes and I'll meet you outside." She wasn't looking forward to shoveling snow. Actually, there was nothing more she hated about winter than the snow shoveling.

Rochelle smiled. She knew her friend too well. "Oh, by the way - the neighbor with the snow blower came over. Everything's clear and we're ready to go when you are," Rochelle yelled over her shoulder as she left Trisha's room.

With the new information, Trisha was ready to go in 10 minutes. She ran out the door and met her friend at the shed. Trisha opened the lock with the memorized combination. There sat two brand new yellow 'Yamaha Snow Cats' calling their names. Trisha opened the back doors of the shed that led to the woods. They each got on a sled, started them up, and headed out for what they thought would be a day of fun.

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**A/N:** dg101,orangeangel, and louise1717: thanks for the reviews! orangeagel: As for the kids - I figured since Gibbs seems to like kids and this is how my dream went, I'd use them in the story :) 


	5. Chapter 3: Abby's Lab

**Chapter 3 - NCISHQ, Abby's Lab**

Kate, Tony, and McGee came running into Abby's lab, only to find Ducky already standing there. McGee instantly noticed that something was off. Then he realized what it was - For once, there was no music blaring from Abby's speakers and Ducky wasn't telling a story.

Tony was the first to speak. "Kate filled us in on the elevator, Abs. Whose blood is it?" Tony asked the gothic forensic scientist, getting right to the point.

Abby looked at Tony with worry. "It's Gibbs' blood… It's a perfect match."

Kate let out her breath, "Abby are you sure? Can't you run the test again? I mean, can't there be some mistake?" For being such a strong woman, Kate looked incredibly frail.

Abby shook her head at her friend. "You know I don't need to, Kate. DNA doesn't lie…"

McGee was the next to speak. "Just how much blood was there, Abby? Are we talking a nose bleed amount of blood?" the younger agent asked, hopefully.

Abby looked at Kate, then the floor. "I…I don't think so McGee. There was pretty much blood," she said, again meeting Kate's eyes. Kate looked as if she were going to break down. Abby quickly realized she shouldn't have said that, so she tried to cover her mistake. "But there definitely wasn't enough to mean that Gibbs was seriously wounded. No, if it were that, there would have been a lot more blood. A lot more. There, there just wasn't enough…"

"Shouldn't we get over to Gibbs' place and start bagging and tagging?" Tony asked. "Come on lets-"

Finally speaking, Ducky cut off Tony. "No, my boy. We already notified the director. She sent over _twenty_ agents, including Fornell and his FBI team. If there's anything there, it will be brought back here for us to analyze. However hard it may be, we are supposed to sit tight." Ducky looked directly at Tony, "The last part was a direct order. We are not to get involved. The director believes that we will not be able to think clearly because we are emotionally attached to Gibbs," Dr. Mallard said with resentment.

McGee, who was normally mild mannered, became enraged. "She said what? How are we not supposed to do anything? Screw direct orders," McGee spat out as he stomped out of the lab.

"Tim, what are you going to do?" Kate asked as she followed him.

"I'm going to find Gibbs. Whoever wants to join me, you're more than welcome. If not, then stay the Hell out of my way!" McGee said forcefully as he smacked the 'up' button for the elevator.

Tony, Abby, and Ducky nodded at each other. They didn't know what they were going to get in to, but they didn't care. All they cared about was the safe return of their friend.


	6. Chapter 4: Lunch Break Discovery

**Chapter 4 - Lunch Break Discovery**

Rochelle brought the sled to a stop and waited for her friend to pull up beside her. "Hey, there's a clearing not too far from here, right? You wanna stop and eat lunch there? I'm starving," Rochelle complained.

Trisha nodded. "Yea, I'm hungry, too. I'll lead the way." With that she took off down the trail with Rochelle following in her tracks. In about 15 minutes they reached their destination: a small clearing that the local Boy Scout troop used during the summer months for camping.

Hopping off the sled, Rochelle took off her helmet and unpacked their lunches from her bag. They sat on their sleds eating and talking about what they wanted to do the rest of the week. Rochelle was halfway through a sentence when Trisha stopped her abruptly.

"Shhhh! Did you just hear that or am I going crazy?" Trisha asked as she looked past Rochelle and down a steep hill.

"Huh?" Rochelle asked. "I didn't hear any-"

Trisha cut her off, "There it was again! Please tell me you heard that!"

Rochelle looked at her friend with big brown eyes, "Oh yeah, I definitely heard that. It sounded like a moan. Shhh, there it was again!"

By this time Trisha was already peering down the sharp trail. She began to descend down the steep embankment when Rochelle freaked out. "Wait, where the Hell do you think you're going? You don't know what's making that noise! What if it's a wild animal!" she exclaimed.

"Hey, what if it's not!" Trisha half asked, half yelled at her friend. "I can't just leave without knowing, and I know you can't either," she said and began to continue down the hill.

Rochelle sighed, "Yea, you're right. Hold on a second, I'll get rope. If we want to get back up that hill we better have something to hold on to." Rochelle grabbed both Trisha's bag and her own. Reaching into her main compartment, she pulled out the line and tied it around a tree, then threw the remaining rope down the hill. "Here's your bag. Now don't fall. I don't think I'd be able to roll your ass back up this mountain."

Trisha made her way slowly down the steep hill, then yelled for her friend to do the same. She waited patiently until Rochelle was beside her.

"Shhh, do you hear anything?" Rochelle asked. She began scanning along the trees.

Trisha shook her head, "Nope, but let's have a look around anyway."

Rochelle was obviously nervous. "I'm sure that it was just the wind playing tricks on us. It could happen you know. I've heard stories about it -" Rochelle stopped talking when she saw what she thought was a form sitting against a tree. "Oh my God… Trisha, turn around! What is that?"

Trisha spun around, "What, where? Show me!"

Rochelle had already taken off. Trisha followed her. About 100 yards away, Rochelle froze, terrified. She turned to her friend, "Please tell me that isn't what I think it is!"

"Yes it is! That's a person!" Both of them ran towards the snow covered figure. It wasn't moving. Getting closer, Trisha could make out the form of an older man. His face was rather pale and his lips were blue. There was dried blood on him.

"Oh God, is he dead?" Rochelle whispered.

"I don't know! Help me get the snow off him!" Trisha commanded.

Rochelle stood in place and watched as Trisha gently brushed the snow from the man's head and shoulders. Kneeling on the other side, Rochelle began to do the same. She stopped when she hit the rope tying him to the tree.

Trisha saw it at the same time. "We gotta get this off of him, Chelle. The rope's frozen; we'll never get it untied… Wait! Go in my bag, there should be a lighter in the front pocket. Go around to the back of the tree and see if you can burn through the rope. I'll keep clearing the snow. Hurry!"

Rochelle took off and fetched both bags from where they had dropped them. Reaching into Trisha's bag, she pulled out a lighter. Running to the back of the tree where the man was tied, Rochelle flicked on the lighter and began to heat the ice encasing the rope.

"Chelle, is it working?" Trisha asked as she continued to dig the man out of the snow.

"Uh, yea, I think so… but it's gonna take a while," Rochelle answered. "Do you have him dug out yet?"

"Hang on!" Trisha breathed as she finished clearing the snow from the man. "Now I do."

Rochelle peeked around from behind the tree. "Trisha," she whispered, coming next to her friend "is he alive?"

They both stared at the man. He had a cut above his right eyebrow. There was a trail of dried blood from the cut that traveled down the side of his face and continued down his neck. He had some dried blood in his gray hair as well. There was more of it that ran out of the left corner of his mouth and down his chin. To top it all off, his lips were a pale blue.

Scooting closer to the limp figure, Trisha noticed he was still breathing. "He's alive, Chelle! Look, his chest is going up and down…" Trisha took off her glove. Hesitantly, she brought her hand up to the man's face, gently stroking his cheek. "Hey, can you hear me?" she asked the man softly. "Come on, buddy. Wake up." Trisha took off her other glove, took the man's frozen hand in hers, and gently squeezed it. "Hey," she said while she continued to stroke his cheek, "if you can hear me, squeeze my hand."

By this time, Rochelle had moved to the back of the tree. Finally burning through the rope, she came around the tree and pulled it away from the man's chest. It came away from his jacket with a crunching noise. "My God, how long has he been out here?" she asked with a horrified look on her face. "He's got to be suffering from hyperthermia. They taught us about this in that safety class we took. Trisha, we gotta get him warm. You know what happens if his body temperature drops too low." Trisha simply nodded. Rochelle reached backwards for Trisha's bag and removed the heavy blankets she had packed that morning. She placed them around the man the best she could, then took off her gloves and took the man's other hand in hers. "Trish, what if he doesn't wake up?"

Trisha glared at Rochelle. "Try to be positive, just for a second, if you will!" She gazed back at the man, "Hey, come on, buddy. I know you're in there," she said as she ran her other hand through his hair. "Squeeze my hand, you can do it. Please…" but the man's giant hand remained limp in Trisha's small one.

Rochelle let go of his other hand. "I don't think he's…"

"For the love of God, Rochelle. Have some freakin' faith you dumb…" Trisha stopped suddenly when she felt the man's hand weakly squeeze hers. Turning back to face him, Trisha asked, "Hey, can you hear me? Come on do it again, squeeze my hand again!" A smile ran across her face as she felt the man's gentle grip. She turned around to Rochelle to tell her, but her friend was staring at the man's face.

"Trisha, he… he's definitely awake. And looking at you," Rochelle muttered.

Whipping around, she met the man's icy blue eyes. "Well, hiya," Trisha said softly. "Let me bring you up to date - me and my friend here were out snowmobiling. We stopped for a break and we heard you moaning. We came down that hill and found you here; tied to the tree. I'm Trish, and that's Rochelle over there," she said.

The man closed his eyes. "I'm Special Agent Gibbs," he whispered. "I work for NCIS in Washington…"

The girls were both silent for a moment. Rochelle looked at him suspiciously. "Let me get this right. You want us to believe that you're some sort of 'secret agent' from NC-whatever? What kind of agent gets himself beat up and tied to a tree? I think you're full of crap!" Rochelle stated matter-of-factly as she backed away from Gibbs.

Trisha looked at her friend with her 'I'm gonna kick your ass in a minute' stare. "Actually, Rochelle, he said 'Special Agent'. And secondly, it's NCIS. Like the TV show. And last off, stop being retarded. I know you're scared, but so am I." She turned back to Gibbs, who still had a hold of her hand. His eyes were on her.

"Listen, kid, please just don't take off. I am who I say I am. You just gotta belie-" he cut off in mid sentence. Gibbs' face tightened and he tried to bring his knees to his chest. He let out a low moan and gripped the small hand he held in his. At that point he slumped over, right into Trisha.

"Whoa! Hey, what's wrong?" she asked Gibbs as she tried to hold up his weight. "Chelle, help!"

Rochelle went right to Trisha, "Ok, lay down. Let him use you as a sort of pillow," she said as Trisha lay down in the snow. Rochelle managed to position Gibbs so that he was on his side. His head was on Trisha's shoulder and chest, and Trisha's chin rested on the top of Gibbs' head. Chelle wrapped the blankets around Gibbs and said, "Listen, I'm going to go get a sled. The only way we're gonna get him home is if one of us drives the sled and the other sits in back of him. We'll stick him in the middle of us. I'll be right back. Keep talking to him and keep him awake. You can't let him fall asleep," she yelled as she bolted in the direction of the snowmobiles.

Trisha watched her friend go, then turned her full attention to the man who was laying on her. "Agent Gibbs," she said. "Gibbs, listen to me. I know you're hurting bad. I don't know what happened to you, but we're gonna get you out of here, just hang in there. Chelle went to get a snowmobile. Gibbs, are you with me?"

Gibbs opened his eyes. His chest was rising and falling fast. "I…I…" he gasped as he tried to talk.

"Shhhh, Gibbs, just lay still," Trisha said as she ran her free hand through his hair. "You're gonna be ok," she said reassuringly. "I promise, we'll take good care of you, you just gotta trust us, ok?"

Gibbs nodded, but gripped Trisha's jacket tightly. He swallowed hard. For the first time since he was awake, he was fully feeling the pain. His ribs were killing him and his head was throbbing. To make it worse, he was starting to shiver.

Trisha could feel Gibbs shaking as spasms ran through his body. She reached around and pulled the blanket tighter against them, trying to use her body heat to warm Gibbs, then turned her face so that she was breathing warm air on the top of Gibbs' head. "Hang in there, big guy," she whispered. Gibbs' breathing had become rather haggard. He was still gripping the front of her coat. Trisha winced when she thought about what the man must be feeling.

"Hey, Gibbs. You gotta stay awake, ok? It shouldn't be too long until Chelle gets back with that sled. She had to backtrack, though, because there was no way to get down that hill over there. You still with me, Gibbs?"

Gibbs mumbled something that Trisha couldn't understand. He turned his head and nestled into Trisha's neck. His breathing had slowed down a bit and his grip on Trisha's jacket had loosened a little. Trisha had managed to free her other arm from under Gibbs' body and was rubbing his back, trying to comfort him.

A few minutes went by, then Trisha remembered what Rochelle had said about talking to Gibbs and keeping him awake. "You know," Trisha said, "am I the only one who thinks this is a little weird? I mean, we barely know each other and here we are snuggling." She glanced down at Gibbs and asked, "Don't you think things are moving a little fast for a first date?"

Gibbs managed a weak smile. "Yea," he whispered, "but I always had that effect on the girls when I was growing up."

Trisha laughed as she heard Rochelle on the snowmobile. "Here comes Chelle. I told you we'd get you out of here!"


	7. Chapter 5: Jen's Office

**Chapter 5 – NCISHQ**

The ride in the elevator was unbearable. No one knew what to say, or how they were going to go about this. Abby was leaning against McGee, whose face was still rather red from his outburst. Ducky was leaning against the stainless steel elevator wall, and Tony was standing next to Kate.

Glancing at Kate, he noticed that her hair was ruffled and her clothes were wrinkled. She was still wearing the same outfit that she had had on yesterday. 'She probably didn't go home last night,' Tony thought to himself.

Everyone on Gibbs' team knew about the feelings Kate had for Gibbs. And Gibbs had matched her feelings. Abby had pointed it out to Tony and Ducky after Gibbs had been on Air Force One with Kate. McGee had noticed the electricity between his boss and Kate shortly after meeting the two.

The bell sounded as the elevator came to a halt, bringing Tony out of thought. He knew exactly what he was going to do. He took off in the direction of Director Shepherd's office, only to have McGee beat him there. McGee burst right into her office without as much as a knock on her door. Tony and Kate had stopped briefly outside; each exchanging bewildered glances before they too stormed the office. Ducky and Abby both followed quickly.

Director Shepherd looked at the agents, forensic scientist, and medical examiner with alook of shock. "Just what is going on here?" she demanded. "I was in the middle of speaking with---"

McGee didn't care. "Frankly, Director, I could give a shit who you're talking to! You have no right to hold us back from finding Gibbs! He's the one who made me the agent I am today, and I'll be damned if I just sit on my ass and let him die! And if you don't like it – FIRE ME!"

Tony put a hand on Probie's shoulder. McGee had just crossed the line, big time, and Tony knew he needed backup. "And that goes for the rest of us, Madame Director," Agent Dinozzo said sharply. "You had better let us in on this investigation."

Jen had expected protest from Gibbs' team, but she hadn't expected them to barge into her office and basically declare war. She looked at the faces of the people standing before her. She hadn't realized until now just how much these people cared for each other. She knew she had no right to keep them from finding Gibbs. But how could she allow the team to lead the investigation when she had already told the FBI that they would be in charge? Then she had an idea.

She looked at the team before her. Sternly, she said, "As of now you are all on two weeks mandatory leave. What you do in that two week is up to you. Abby, you can still have full use of your lab, if necessary."

McGee stared at the Director. Tony took a hold of McGee's arm and gently pulled him towards the door. Once they had gotten outside of the office, Kate walked to McGee and gave him a hug.

"Thanks, Tim. I owe you one," Kate said with a smile.

As they all turned to leave, Tony came up beside McGee and slapped him on the back, saying, "Way to go, McGee." McGee just smiled and nodded, then headed off in search of Gibbs. The rest of the team followed in determination.

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A/N: Sorry, I know this chappter is kinda short. I wrote it sort of on the fly as I am just moving back to college and getting settled, so I'm not sure when the next update will be. Reviews are neat!


	8. Chapter 6: Saving Gibbs

**Chapter 6 - Saving Gibbs**

Rochelle came speeding around the curve like a bat right out of Hell. She slowed down when she saw Trisha's red jacket and the big man who was still laying on her. Pulling on the handle brake, Rochelle pulled up as close as she could to the two in the snow without actually running them over, then turned off the sled.

"Well," Rochelle said sarcastically, "let me say how much fun that was. I almost crashed when I thought I'd go for a shortcut over a small hill. And let me tell you, I underestimated the hill. I just saw more air than a skateboard at the X Games!" she exclaimed as she knelt behind Gibbs.

Trisha looked at her friend and could easily read her. Although she was trying to be upbeat, Trisha knew she was really worried. Chelle kept looking from the sled and back to Gibbs, the sled and back to Gibbs. Finally Rochelle spoke, "How are we gonna get him on the sled? I don't want to move him and hurt him…"

Trisha nodded knowingly. "What choice do we have, Chelle? We better do it, we're wasting time here."

"Hey," Gibbs said weakly. "I was a Marine. I know you guys don't want to hurt me, but I'm just gonna hafta suck it up. Do whatever you have to do, ok?"

Rochelle looked at her friend, who was still rubbing Gibbs' back. She thought for a moment, then said, "Ok, Trish. I'll take his arm and pull as hard as I can, you push. Gibbs, we need you to help as much as you can, ok? You're kind of, um… heavy."

"Hey, you're not the one he's laying on!" Trisha looked up at the sky in thought. "Wait, let's try to get him into a kneeling position and then go from there," Trisha thought out loud. "Gibbs, bend your knees. Good. Now, on the count of three, try to sit up. Ready, Chelle?" she asked her friend.

"Yep, on three. Ready? One, two…" and on the count of three Rochelle pulled Gibbs' upper arm with all she had as Trisha pushed Gibbs. It started out ok. Then Gibbs let out a yelp and gasped and immediately Rochelle stopped pulling.

"Chelle, don't stop!" Trisha grunted against Gibbs. "I can't do it by myself, snap out of it!"

Rochelle had started crying, but did as she was told. She dropped to her knees next to Gibbs when they had gotten him to a kneeling position and took in the scene. She couldn't tell if Trisha was actually holding up Gibbs or if he was doing it himself, but Gibbs had his arms wrapped around Trisha, who had her back pressed against the snowmobile. Gibbs was in a slumped-over-kneeling position and had his head resting on Trisha's shoulder. He had started breathing hard again, and each time he exhaled he made a whimpering noise. When Rochelle looked at her friend, she realized that Trisha had tears streaming down her face as she rested her head against Gibbs.

Rochelle reached over and ran her hands up and down Gibbs' back. "I'm sorry, Agent Gibbs," she managed to choke out between tears.

Trisha took a deep breath and closed her eyes as Gibbs whimpered into her jacket. "It'll pass Gibbs, hang on," she said as she reached around him and held him the best she could.

They stayed that way for what seemed like forever. With the girls' coaching, Gibbs had managed to get his breathing under control, but suddenly he started to shiver again. Trisha noticed that it was much more intense than before. Rochelle noticed Gibbs shaking, also, and looked at Trisha. Meeting her eyes, Trisha nodded.

"Hey, big guy. Listen to me. We have to get you on that sled. We don't have a choice, Gibbs. You gotta help us again. Ok?" Trisha asked the agent. When he didn't reply, she got scared. "Gibbs? Answer me!"

Gibbs gripped the back of Trisha's jacket and lifted his head a little. "I don't think I can, kiddo. I… just leave me here," Gibbs sighed as his head fell back to Trisha's shoulder.

Gibbs' latest statement had left Trisha speechless, but not Rochelle. She glared at the man. "Leave you here? Like Hell! Look at how close you are to that sled. You can do it, and we're gonna help! I'm cold, tired, and hungry, and now I want to go home. And you're coming with us. End of story," Rochelle spat out.

Least to say, Gibbs was a little surprised at the girl's outburst. He had expected them to drop him and take off. Yet here there were, trying to save his life. He thought about his options for a minute. Gibbs let out another heavy sigh and picked his head up again. "I don't have a choice, do I, Rochelle?"

Chelle smiled at him and said softly, "I think we all know the answer to that one, Agent Gibbs."

With that, Gibbs took in a deep breath and made a lunge for the sled. Trisha and Rochelle were there instantly, pulling him up and giving him words of encouragement. Gibbs yelled in pain, but this time neither of the girls backed off. With more pushing, pulling, and Gibbs cursing and yelling, they finally got the man seated on the sled. He was facing the wrong way, but Trisha had decided it would be better. Rochelle had gotten the blankets and had wrapped them around Gibbs, who had basically passed out and had resumed leaning against Trisha. Trisha sat at the back of the snowmobile and had a hold of Gibbs in a bear hug. Rochelle had seated herself in the front and leaned against Gibbs' back, trying to wedge him between herself and Trisha and prevent him from possibly falling off the snowmobile.

"Chelle, you drive as fast as you can. I don't think he can last much longer! Most of the ride is gonna be uphill. Gibbs will lean on me, and I'm gonna reach around him and hold onto you so I don't fall off of here. This is a brand new sled, open this bad boy up!" Trisha yelled.

Chelle didn't need to be told twice. She gunned the engine and headed for the most direct route to the house.


	9. Chapter 7: Kate's Apartment

**Chapter 7 – Kate's Apartment**

The team had decided that Kate's apartment would be the best for the makeshift headquarters in the search for Gibbs. Abby and McGee were seated on the love sofa, Ducky was sitting on the recliner, and Tony and Kate were on the sofa sifting through a mound of files on the coffee table.

Tony took charge. "Ok, so what do we know so far?"

"Well, Gibbs was undercover as an arms dealer. He was working with these three men here, who were believed to be selling weapons and ammo to a terrorist cell," McGee said, as he held up their files. "Lt. Watson, Capt. Miller, and Second Lt. Wiley. All three served on the same ship; all three received an honorable discharge within the last six months. Of course, now they can't be found; even their families haven't heard from them. They all shared the same bank, which reported to us a considerable jump in their account balance two weeks ago," McGee stated.

"How big of a jump?" Abby asked.

McGee flipped through a few pages of bank statements. "Whoa," he said. "According to this, which was printed yesterday, each man has deposited 1.3 million dollars, and made withdraws every 3 days for the last 3 weeks. $50,000, cold hard cash every time."

Kate sighed and looked from one person to another. "I'm sorry, but how is this going to help us find Gibbs? This is useless!" She flung the file she was looking at across the room. It hit the wall with a thud.

Everyone fell silent. Then, out of no where, Abby jumped up and startled everyone. "McGee, let me see those files!" Abby yelled as she bounded to McGee and snatched the papers from his hands. She scanned through them, "Uh huh, uh huh. Yea. Uh huh. Yes, yes, YES! I've got it!" she exclaimed.

"Abigail, my dear, want to tell us just what you've got?" Ducky asked from the recliner.

"Ok, look here. According to this, these guys have been withdrawing money every 3 days. And a lot of money. Every three days - don't you get it?" she asked the rest of the team.

Tony shook his head, then filled in for his boss when he said, "Abs, don't make me use a magic word!"

Abby turned to McGee, "Come on, Mr. MIT Man. Don't you even understand what I'm getting at here? If these guys take money out of their account every three days…"

It hit McGee then. "Then we can put a GPS chip in with the money and hope they lead us to Gibbs!"

"Exactly!" Abby said with excitement. "Or at least we can catch these three losers and get information out of them, then go get Gibbs after we find out where he is!"

Kate jumped up and went over to Abby. She hugged her, saying, "I knew there was a reason I liked you! Now come on, let's get this underway!"


	10. Chapter 8: Finally Home

**Chapter 8 – Finally Home**

Trisha turned her head to the right to see where they were as they passed a giant heap of rocks. They were only 5 minutes from the house, but it had begun to snow pretty heavily. Trisha had been thinking about how they were going to get Gibbs from the sled to the house – and she really had no idea. It wasn't like she could just pick up Gibbs and carry him, although she wished she could. She hoped Rochelle would come up with something, and quickly, too. She knew that Gibbs had to be hanging on by a thread.

Rochelle leaned hard to the right, guiding the sled down the path to Trisha's place. "Home stretch!" Rochelle yelled over her shoulder. She stopped at the door that led to the garage. "Hey, you think this is the best way, Trish?" she asked as she got up and walked to the back of the sled.

Trisha thought for a moment and, coming up with nothing better, nodded in agreement. "Can you take Gibbs for a minute? I'll go unlock the house and put the dog somewhere."

Rochelle got back on the sled and sat behind Gibbs, then gently pulled him backwards and off of Trisha, who bolted to the house and unlocked the door. Chelle's arms went under his and she held him against her. Gibbs' head rested on her shoulder. She gulped. "Trisha, hurry up!" she yelled. Chelle had at least expected him to say something, but Gibbs didn't even move. "Agent Gibbs! Wake up! Come on, we're home!"

Hearing Rochelle yelling, Trisha sprinted back outside to the sled. Chelle was gently rocking a motionless Gibbs and talking to him. She looked at Trisha with tears in her eyes. "He's not responding. He won't answer me. You woke him up before, try again…"

Trisha ripped both of her gloves off. She took Gibbs' face in her small hands and pressed her forehead against his, then began speaking softly to him. "Gibbs, we made it. You're so close, don't give up now. You're five feet from the house. Come on, wake up," she pleaded.

Gibbs' eyes fluttered and then opened. He tried to talk, but all that came out was a moan. He stared straight into Trisha's eyes, then simply nodded, giving Trisha the ok to move him into the house.

"Arms around me, Gibbs," Trisha commanded the agent. "Give me everything you've got, ok? Chelle, help me once he gets off of you."

Gibbs leaned into Trisha, then stood, bent over at the waist. Trisha struggled under his weight, but soon Rochelle was beside her. They slowly moved Gibbs into the house. The three made it to the middle of the living room before Gibbs collapsed and pulled the girls down with him.

"Alright then, I think here's good. Ain't no way we're getting him to go any further!" Rochelle said as she stood up. She looked at Gibbs and frowned. He was shaking worse than before. "Uhhh, ok, I'm gonna go grab every blanket and pillow I can find. Be right back," she said, again leaving Trish with Gibbs.

Gibbs opened his eyes and looked at Trisha, who was holding his hand. "…I'm…so…cold…tired…hurts…" he whispered as he shivered profusely.

Trisha nodded and resumed running her hand through his hair. "I know, I know. But you are one tough cookie, Agent Gibbs. I'm gonna get you warm, ok? You can have every blanket in this house. Try to relax, big guy," Trisha said soothingly. She hadn't noticed it until now, but Gibbs' clothes were soaked. 'Well duh,' she thought to herself, 'he's thawing out…' Trisha sighed. "And, uh, this is gonna seem a little weird, but you gotta take your clothes off," she said while she looked to the side and avoided Gibbs' eyes. "I can't let you lie here in soaking wet clothes."

Gibbs nodded as he closed his eyes. "Stay away from my pants, kid."

"Whoa guys, what's goin' on? All I heard was 'Stay away from my pants!'" Rochelle laughed as she came around the corner, carrying every blanket and pillow known to man. She dumped them next to Gibbs, then knelt down beside him. She was holding a pair of clean shorts and a white shirt. "Well, she's right, you know," she said as she gave her best look of innocence to the agent on the floor. "You're not gonna get any warmer in soaked clothing."

Trisha unlaced Gibbs' boots and removed his socks. "Don't worry, Gibbs. We won't look! In fact, here," she said as she threw a fuzzy blue blanket over Gibbs. "Think you can handle undoing your pants?"

Rochelle smirked at her friend. "That sounded really wrong. On so many levels." Trisha glared at her, but it only made Rochelle laugh more.

Gibbs smiled and closed his eyes; he didn't have the energy to argue with the kids. Besides, he knew they were right. Instead he undid his belt and zipper, then simply said, "Ok."

Trish grabbed his pant legs and pulled off his drenched pants as Chelle held the blanket in place. Trisha was about to put Gibbs' feet in the clean pair of shorts when Gibbsstopped her. He wiggled a little then said, "Hey…boxers."

"WHAT?" Trisha asked with big eyes. "Gibbs, I never said anything about that!" She was going to continue her protest, but she noticed Gibbs' shivering and decided to shut up. She figured that the boxers were probably soaked, too.

Rochelle got up and went to the kitchen, then came back with a plastic garbage bag and salad tongs. She tossed them to her friend and said, "Might as well wash his stuff, grab his underoos and put 'em in there with the tongs."

Trisha sighed with relief. "Good thinking, Chelle." With that she reached under the blanket and came out with Gibbs' flannel boxers firmly grasped in the salad tongs. Trisha wrinkled her nose as she quickly put them and his pants in the bag.

Rochelle had taken the shorts and had gotten them up to Gibbs' knees. Gibbs took over from there and pulled them up around his waist. Chelle had gotten a bunch more blankets and had put them on the bottom half of Gibbs.

"Ok, shirt time," Trisha said. "I need your help, Chelle." Trisha reached and carefully unzipped Gibbs' jacket. She knew his ribs hurt, and she didn't want to hurt him more if she didn't have to. "Ok Gibbs, bend your elbows so we can get your jacket off." She gingerly removed Gibbs' arm from his jacket sleeve. Rochelle did the same, then pulled the jacket out from underneath Gibbs' body. Trisha reached down and grabbed Gibbs' navy blue polo and white T-shirt at the same time. "Can you put your arms up, Gibbs?"

Gibbs nodded and put his arms up, but as soon as he did pain shot through his ribs, causing him to gasp. Trisha yanked his shirts off, and then, just as quickly, Rochelle had the fresh T-shirt over Gibbs' arms and head. Trisha took Gibbs' arms and put them back down at his sides and pulled the shirt down the rest of the way, but not before she saw the deep purple bruises on Gibbs' ribs.

Meanwhile, Rochelle had gotten a pillow and placed it beneath Gibbs' head, then went to the outlet in the wall and plugged in the electric blanket. Turning the blanket on high, she tucked it around Gibbs' body and placed more blankets on top of him.

Rochelle sat there for a few minutes, then sighed and looked at Trisha. "Ok, I think he'll be alright. I'm cold, and you look tired. You wanna shower first or should I?"

Trisha was about to say that she would shower, but a moan from Gibbs quickly changed her mind. "Nahh Chelle, you can go take one. I'll stay with Gibbs," she said as she got up and turned on the TV. Grabbing the remote, she came back and sat down on the floor next to the man.

Rochelle took the garbage bag with Gibbs' clothes in them to the laundry room. She threw everything in the washer, added some detergent, and turned on the cold water. After the washer started, Chelle headed for the shower.

Back in the living room, Gibbs opened his eyes again and looked at the little girl seated next to him. "Trish," he whispered.

She smiled at him. "Shhh Gibbs, it's ok now. You can sleep. I'll be right here when you wake up," she said as she ran her fingers through his hair. "Go ahead, close your eyes."

Gibbs closed his eyes and drifted to sleep as Trisha stroked his hair.

"Night, Gibbs," Trisha whispered to the sleeping agent.

* * *

A/N: Thanks for the nice reviews! I'll try and update again soon; you should expect the next chapter(s) sometime this weekend.


	11. Chapter 9: Catching the Bad Guys

**Chapter 9 - Catching the Bad Guys**

Instead of a mound of files, Kate's coffee table was now cluttered with high tech gadgets and gizmos that Abby had insisted she needed - and had made McGee retrieve from her lab. For some reason unknown to everyone else, Abby had insisted on working from Kate's place instead of her lab at NCIS. Abby had told everyone that she felt more relaxed away from the lab, but in reality, she just wanted Kate to be in her own home.

They had also secured an empty warehouse where Tony and McGee would be taking the men after they had them in custody. McGee had just wanted to take them back to NCIS, but Tony had argued that this particular interrogation may not go "exactly" by the books.

"Mike check," Abby said into her headset. "Tony, McGee, can you hear me?"

Tony's voice came over the speakers connected to one of Abby's laptops. "That's a 10-4 Abby," he answered.

"Yep, reading you loud and clear, Abs," McGee said, "We're in position and ready to intercept them after they leave the bank."

Two red lights began blinking on Abby's computer screen. "Ok guys, get ready. The teller has engaged. Wait for it… Ok, the first guy is leaving. McGee, he's headed your way!"

McGee stood and watched the bank doors. Sure enough, a man carrying a black duffel bag came briskly walking out of the bank. McGee recognized him as Lt. Watson. "Freeze, NCIS!" McGee yelled as he pointed his weapon. "Watson, drop the bag and put your hands over your head!"

Startled, Watson complied. McGee cuffed him and had him in custody when Tony, driving their car, came screeching to a halt in front of him. Second Lt. Wiley was cuffed and in the back seat.

Tony jumped out of the car. "Thata boy, Probie! Throw him in the back and let's go!"

McGee did as he was told. Tony jumped back into the driver's seat and they sped off in the direction of the empty warehouse. A smirk came over McGee's face as he realized that Gibbs' driving habits had finally rubbed off on Tony. Then McGee promptly rolled down the window and threw up as Tony sped through a red light.


	12. Chapter 10: Gibbs Has a Fever

**Chapter 10 - Gibbs Has a Fever**

Trisha woke up to something warm and fuzzy rubbing on her chin. It took her a little while, but then she realized that it was her cat. She pushed it away and reached for her alarm clock, only to have her arm hit the carpet. Boy was she surprised when that happened. She thought that the whole thing had been one strange dream. She turned her head and saw Rochelle sitting on the couch, flipping through channels on the television. Trisha sat up to check on Gibbs, whom she had fallen asleep next to.

"He's sound asleep," Rochelle told her. "As far as I know, he hasn't woken up at all since last night. That's probably a good thing… did you see those bruises he has? He has to hurt," Rochelle said.

"Yea, I noticed them, how could I miss them? Poor guy," Trisha exclaimed softly. "Still, he looks a lot better than when we found him. At least his lips are a normal color again." Trisha had gotten up and clambered to the bathroom, then the kitchen. She grabbed a bowl and put some Frosted Flakes in it, then added some milk. Inhaling it fairly quickly, she came back to the living room and plopped herself next to Gibbs.

Gibbs was indeed sound asleep. Minus the cuts and dried blood that remained on his face, he looked quite peaceful. He was snoring softly. He lay on his back with his head resting on Trisha's pillow that Rochelle had gotten the night before. He was covered in a mound of blankets.

Rochelle was still channel surfing. She stopped at The Weather Channel and waited for the local forecast. Instead, a winter weather warning flashed across the screen: "A Winter Weather Advisory has been issued for the following northeastern states - New York and Pennsylvania. Snow will begin to fall at 10PM EST; snow will be heavy at times and will produce blizzard and whiteout conditions…"

"You've got to be kidding me," Trish said while looking at the TV. "Just great. You know we're gonna lose power, especially if it's a wet snow. Some tree will fall over onto the power lines; happens every time. I mean, someone sneezes the wrong direction out here and the power goes out… this sucks," Trisha stated.

Rochelle looked over at Trisha. "Well, what are we gonna do? It's cold outside and I don't think Gibbs needs to cool off anytime soon…"

Trisha nodded, then told Rochelle to get dressed. They went outside and brought chopped wood into the garage from the shed so they could start a fire in the fireplace if necessary. Trisha had filled the generator up with gasoline and got it ready. That way, they could hook up the appliances in the kitchen and be able to use the stove and the fridge. Once they had gotten everything together, they both came back to the living room. Trisha sat next to Gibbs on the floor and Chelle took the Lay-Z Boy.

"Hey, we should probably wake him up. He needs to get some fluids in him, you know," Rochelle told Trish.

Trisha looked at Gibbs, who was still sleeping. "Yea, I know. I almost want to let him alone; if he wakes up he's just gonna feel the pain." Trisha sighed, "Should we do it now?"

Rochelle looked at her friend and said, "We? It's up to you to wake him up! He's a special agent. Who knows, maybe he'll wake up and go into 'kill mode' or something!"

Trisha just shook her head as Rochelle went to the kitchen. She reached over and began to run her hand through Gibbs' silver hair. "Agent Gibbs," she called softly. "Hey Gibbs, you gotta wake up for a little bit. Come on, buddy, time to wake up…"

Gibbs opened his blue eyes and blinked a few times. He looked at the girl who was kneeling over him and running her hand through his hair. He went to talk, but his voice was raspy and his throat hurt.

"Hey sleepy head," Trish said to Gibbs. "You've been sleeping for like the last 15 hours. We thought it would be a good idea to wake you up for a little bit. You want something to drink?" she asked him.

Gibbs nodded as Rochelle came out of the kitchen with a water bottle. She knelt next to Gibbs as Trisha put her arm under his head, propping him up a little bit so he wouldn't choke.

Gibbs took small sips of the water. He closed his eyes; the coolness felt good against his sore throat. He soon finished off the bottle, and Trisha gently put his head back on the pillow. He felt much better than last night. After both kids went back into the kitchen, Gibbs decided that he was sick of laying down; he needed to get in contact with his team - especially Kate.'God, she must be worried,' he thought to himself.He rolled over on his side and attempted to sit up; he had no problem until he was actually sitting. Gibbs moaned as he closed his eyes tightly and tried to block the pain. He wished he hadn't moved. His ribs began to throb in time with his heart beat. He groaned again, but this time it was loud enough that Trisha and Rochelle had heard it. They both came running into the living room. Gibbs had started gasping continuously. His shoulders were rising and falling fast.

"Gibbs, lay back down!" Rochelle commanded.

"No!" Gibbs said with defiance. "Actually, I can't…" he said between gasps, frozen with pain.

Trisha stooped behind Gibbs and pressed her chest against his back. She reached around and put her hands on his chest, pulling him into her tiny frame. "Ok Gibbs, match my breathing. You're hyperventilating. Inhale, Gibbs," she said as she slightly moved her hands away from his chest, letting it rise. "Now let it out," she instructed as she applied pressure as his chest fell. "Breathe in… breathe out. Again. Good Gibbs. It's passing. Hang on," she whispered to him.

Exhausted, Gibbs let his head fall backwards onto Trisha's shoulder. "Damn it," he muttered as he passed out again.

Rochelle slid the Lay-Z Boy behind Trisha so she could lean back against it. She brought over some pillows from the couch so Trisha could sit on them, bringing her up to Gibbs' height. Trisha let out a heavy sigh, then rested her head against Gibbs' head.

Rochelle looked at Gibbs for a minute, then put her hand against his forehead. It was hot and clammy. "Uh oh," she said.

Trisha looked at her and waited for her to go on. She saw worry in her friend's eyes.

Rochelle had gotten up and went to the bathroom. She came back with a thermometer and stuck the end in Gibbs' mouth to take his temperature. When the thermometer beeped, Chelle took it and said, "Yep, I think we over-thawed him. His temp is 102."

Trisha shook her head. "I don't think it's our fault, Chelle. Actually, I'm not surprised. Go get a cold washcloth for him. I think his temperature will come down by itself. We'll take it again later tonight," she said. After Rochelle had gotten the washcloth and given it to Trisha, Trisha held it against Gibb's forehead.

Rochelle put in a DVD and plopped onto the couch. She glanced over at Trisha and wondered why she had taken such a liking to the man who was leaning on her. She knew her friend as the tough girl who never cried, never got too close to anyone, never showed her true feelings. 'This whole situation is just really weird,' she thought to herself. Feeling tired, Rochelle told herself that she'd just close her eyes for a few minutes.

Trisha smiled and chuckled to herself as she thought about what would happen if someone saw her like this - with some guy sleeping on her. Her reputation would be ruined. She had never been the cuddling type. Gibbs stirred and started coughing. He had gripped one of Trisha's hands. Trisha rubbed his chest and head until he had calmed down. "Easy Gibbs, try to relax," she said.

"Stay…please…" Gibbs whispered to Trisha.

She smirked, "In case you haven't noticed, you have me pinned against a chair, it's not like I have a choice." She knew that wasn't true; she could have gotten up if she wanted to. Trisha rested her chin on his shoulder. "But I'd stay with you anyway, Gibbs," she said into his shirt.

Gibbs smiled, "Thanks, kiddo." He started coughing and pain knifed through his ribs. Then he felt Trisha's hand running through his hair again. Gibbs closed his eyes. He didn't know why, but when she stroked his hair, he felt comforted. He leaned his head against Trisha's, whose rested on his shoulder. "I don't think I can sleep anymore, Trish," he said.

Trisha thought for a minute. "You know, my mom used to sing me a song when I had trouble falling asleep." She was silent for a moment, and then, very softly, she began to sing:

"Dream, child, as childhood wants to do.Dream all this night will allow. Dream, child, dream with an angel's view. Out there safe in your clouds. Wait for me now, I will be there for you. No matter what, tomorrow may bring, this I will vow: I will be there, for this child with different wings. Dream child, stars have been rumored to, see dreams within newborn eyes. And in their arms I believe they do, keep safe until you arise. Wait for me now, I will be there for you. No matter what, tomorrow may bring. This I will vow: I will be there, for this child with different wings."

She was silent again. She could tell by Gibbs' steady breathing that he was asleep. Trisha sat there and watched TV while Gibbs slept against her and Rochelle dreamed on the couch. The cat came and curled up beside Trisha, purring loudly. She put her head back on Gibbs' shoulder, soon falling asleep while listening to his breathing.


	13. Chapter 11: Dead or Alive?

**Chapter 11 - Dead or Alive?**

After Tony and McGee had gotten all of the information they needed, they drove back to Kate's apartment. Abby and Ducky were waiting for them; Kate had fallen asleep on her bed after Ducky ordered her to get some rest.

"Well?" Abby asked Tony and McGee as they walked in the door. "What did you guys find out? Please tell me you know where Gibbs is! And why don't I like the looks on your faces?"

Neither agents said anything; Tony found something very interesting on the opposite wall and McGee stared at his shoes.

"Please, Timothy, Tony, you need to tell us what has happened to Jethro," Ducky said.

Tony sighed. "Ok, here's what we know. They heard Gibbs checking in with Kate, and Gibbs let something slip that he shouldn't have. They followed Gibbs to his home and waited until he was asleep, then broke in. Being the Marine he is, Gibbs put up a good fight. But he couldn't handle all three of them. Two guys held him down while the other one kept hitting him until they knocked him out. He probably has broken ribs - if he's still alive," Tony said as his voice drifted off.

McGee continued, "They said they threw him in a truck and started driving. For a while they thought they had already killed him, but eventually Gibbs moved or something. They ended up in Pennsylvania - some place called Mohnton - in the middle of no where. They dragged Gibbs into the woods and tied him to a tree. There was no way he could have escaped. They thought that if internal bleeding didn't kill him, he would eventually freeze to death and…" McGee stopped talking as his voice cracked.

Abby and Ducky were speechless. Ducky went to Abby and pulled her into a hug, but Abby pushed away from Ducky when she saw Kate standing in the hallway. She had tears streaming down her face.

"No," Kate whispered. "Not Gibbs! He can't be dead. It's impossible, Gibbs would never do that! I can't lose him, I've never told him!"

Tony went to Kate and put his arms around her. "We're still going after him, Kate. There's still a chance that he's alive, ok? We can't give up hope just because of what those two idiots said. You have to be strong for Gibbs. He needs you to be strong now, Kate. We'll get him. Shhhh," Tony said as Kate cried into his shirt.

McGee walked to Tony and Kate and put a hand on Kate's shoulder. "We've got directions to where Gibbs is, Kate. Tony and I will find him. I promise."

Tony and McGee had started off towards the door when Kate grabbed McGee's arm. "There is no way in Hell that I'm staying here. I'm coming along to get Gibbs. And I'd like to see you try and tell me that I'm not."


	14. Chapter 12: Personal Information

**Chapter 12 - Personal Information**

Trisha was the first one to wake up this time; Rochelle was still asleep on the couch and Gibbs slept while leaning against her. She sighed.

"Hey, you awake?" Gibbs asked her.

Trisha jumped, startled by Gibbs' voice. He sounded stronger. "Yea, I thought you were still asleep."

"Yea, well I did sleep for 15 hours straight." Both were silent again before Gibbs spoke. "Where did you say that song came from?"

Trisha was quiet before answering. "My mom, Gibbs. She used to sing it to me a long time ago whenever she tucked me in for bed."

"She sounds like a good person," Gibbs said to her.

Trisha nodded, "She was," she said softly.

Gibbs was a little confused at what Trisha had said, but he decided to not press the matter. He had felt the girl tense up when he asked her about the song. He made a mental note to ask Rochelle about it later. Maybe she knew something.

Rochelle had been awake long enough to hear Gibbs ask about Trisha's mom. She could feel the tension in the room. She thought she should break it, so she devised a smallplan. Suddenly she jumped off the couch. "Awww man, what's that smell?" she asked rather loudly, making Gibbs and Trisha jump a little. Rochelle smiled and began sniffing around the room. She stopped when she got near Gibbs and accusingly pointed a finger at the agent. "Ew," she said.

Gibbs looked at Rochelle with raised eyebrows. "Oh?" he asked.

Chelle nodded, "Ohhhh yea, Agent Gibbs. Trisha, how can you not smell that? I mean, the dude's on you!"

Trisha smiled and thought for a moment. She wiggled out from behind Gibbs and stood next to her friend. "Well, we could put him on the computer chair and wheel him into the bathroom. Yea Gibbs, that way you can get cleaned up."

Gibbs looked from one kid to the other. He cocked his head to the side and narrowed his eyes. "Are you trying to tell me something here?" he asked the girls.

"Gibbs, well, not to be mean or anything, but you kind of, um… smell," Rochelle said sheepishly.

Gibbs started to defend himself. "Hey, I…"

"Wait," Rochelle cut him off, "there's more! You also-"

Trisha elbowed her in the ribs and glared at her. Rochelle turned around and started laughing, then left and came back with the computer chair.

"Well," Trisha said, "I'll go turn on the heater in the bathroom and get the bathtub filled up. Gimme a couple minutes."

Gibbs watched Trisha go, then turned his head to Rochelle. "So, what's her story? She seems so…"

"Strong? Grown up? Tough?" Rochelle finished his sentence.

Gibbs looked at her, "Yea, among other things," he said softly.

Rochelle sat down next to him. "Well Gibbs, it's really a long, complicated story, and I don't even know the half of it. She was born into a loving family; her dad was a contractor for the Navy and her mom was a banker. They lived in one of those nice neighborhoods; you know- white picket fence, plenty of neighborhood kids, everyone left their doors unlocked. Then when Trisha was 4, someone broke into her family's house and murdered her parents. She saw the whole thing. She was traumatized and she didn't say a word to anyone for 3 years. She didn't have any other relatives to go live with, so she was put into the system and foster care." Chelle sighed. "She went through 8 foster homes that I know of. Each time the families said that she was just too much to handle, I guess because she had these horrible nightmares. How can someone blame her? But the worst part is that the families would return her right before Christmas. Since I've known her, she's gone through 3 families alone. I don't know the last time she actually had a Christmas," Rochelle said through tears.

Gibbs put an arm around her. "But it looks like she's doing better now, hmmm?"

Rochelle sniffed, "Don't let her fool you, Gibbs. She's hurting inside. I was over the other night, and she got into a fight with the 'dad' she has now. I don't know what it was about, but he threatened to put her back up for adoption. I think he's gonna. She won't ever tell anyone how she feels; she hides her emotions. She doesn't trust anyone, either. Puts up a brick wall, I guess. Since I've known her, the only time I've seen her cry is when we had to get you on the sled in the woods. She cares about you, Gibbs. I've never seen her like this before," Chelle said as she stood up.

Gibbs thought intently for a moment. "Why do you think she likes me? Everyone that knows me thinks I'm a… bastard," he chuckled.

Rochelle smiled, "I really don't know. But I do know that for as long as I've known her, she's never told me about that song. And she actually sang it to you, Gibbs. She has some 'thing' for your hair, too," she giggled as she ruffled his hair.

Gibbs laughed, "Yea, so I've noticed. Whenever she rubs my head I feel so much… I don't know… better."

Rochelle nodded. She brought the chair closer to Gibbs. To her surprise, Gibbs got up slowly and sat in the chair.

"Feeling better, huh?" she asked him.

"Well right until I got up…" Gibbs moaned.

Rochelle spun the chair around and pushed Gibbs in the direction of the bathroom, wondering if she just told the agent too much about her friend.


	15. Chapter 13: In Transit

**Chapter 13 - Driving Along**

"Are we there yet?" Abby asked from the back seat of the black Suburban that Tony had 'acquired' from the NCIS parking garage. The question wasn't really to anyone in particular; more like to whomever was listening.

"No Abby, we're not there yet," Tony responded with a sigh. It was the third time Abby had asked, and Tony's nerves were already shot. He hated driving in the snow, and the snow storm they were currently traveling in was beginning to intensify. Most of all, he was worried for Gibbs.

A few minutes passed. The team sat in the SUV with relative silence; the only sounds were the monotonous noise of the windshield wipers and Kate's occasional instructions to Tony regarding what road to take next.

Abby couldn't stand being this quiet. She, against Ducky's advice, had had one last Caff-Pow fix before they had all piled into the Suburban. Being quiet and sitting still for long periods of time just weren't her thing. "Ok, how about now?" she asked. "Are we there yet?"

Kate turned around from the front passenger's seat. "Abby, we've only been on the road for forty five minutes. It usually takes about two hours to get to Philadelphia, and it's going to take another forty five from there. And all this snow isn't helping any," Kate said as she frowned. She looked to McGee, who was seated to the right of Abby. "Tim, can you pull up a weather report on your PDA?"

McGee nodded, "Yea, just give me one second." He tapped the screen a few times with the pen. "Come on… The signal's not too good right now; it's taking longer than it should. Wait, what the?"

Abby looked at McGee's PDA and wrinkled up her nose. "Ew McGee, that's gross!" she exclaimed as she punched him in the shoulder.

"Ow, Abby! It's not my fault, it's some stupid pop-up! I don't look at that stuff!" McGee stated in defense.

"Look at what, Probie? You got a little of the nasty on there?" Tony inquired from the driver's seat. "See Kate, McGee isn't above that! All men look at porn at one point or another. It's just a man's way of life."

Kate shot him a look. "Not all men are dysfunctional like you, Tony." She turned to Ducky, who was seated on the left side of Abby. "Ducky, did you ever…well, you know?"

Ducky smiled and raised an eyebrow. "Why no, I can't say I have, Caitlyn. I don't find that women degrading themselves is a form of entertainment."

Tony was taken aback. "You mean to tell me that you've never seen porn before, Ducky?"

Ducky thought for a moment. "Well, not on purpose. This reminds me of the time when ---" And, much to the dismay of other passengers in the car, Ducky went on to tell the story of how he once found a 'special video' in his mother's room before they moved to America.

McGee's PDA finally beeped as the weather forecast loaded onto the screen. "It says here that this storm is going to hit Pennsylvania the hardest, starting around 10PM. It hasn't started snowing there yet, or if it has, it's only flurrying. The weatherman is predicting a wet snow that will accumulate, um, a lot."

Kate whipped around and looked at McGee with big brown eyes. "Define 'a lot,' Tim."

McGee gulped, "It s-says anywhere from, from 48 to 54 inches of snow, Kate."

Kate turned to Tony, "What if Gibbs is still tied to that tree? If he's still alive, he won't survive all that snow! It'll bury him!"

Tony put one hand on Kate's shoulder. "We promised to get him, Kate. And we will," Tony said with confidence. "Buckle up, everyone. We're going to make record time here," he stated, punching the accelerator.


	16. Chapter 14: Bubbles

**Chapter 14 - Bubbles**

Trisha had just finished filling up the bathtub with hot water when Rochelle pushed a chair bearing Gibbs into the bathroom. Gibbs looked at Trisha and grinned. It made her a little uncomfortable.

Trish made a face at him. "What?" she asked the man in the chair.

Gibbs smirked and shrugged. "Nothing," he exclaimed with innocence, as he turned to look at the mirror. "Whoa," he said as he gazed at his reflection, "I look like Hell." He brought his hand up to his forehead and ran his fingers over the cut above his eyebrow.

Rochelle took the opportunity, "Yea, and you smell like it, too!"

"Hey!" Gibbs and Trisha exclaimed in unison, causing Rochelle's grin to get even wider.

"Ok kids, I can take it from here," Gibbs told the girls. When they didn't budge, he made a gesture towards the door. "Seriously, I'm good." Rochelle turned and left, but her friend stayed put.

"So you don't think you're gonna need any help? Ok hot shot, go ahead and try and take your shirt off," Trisha told Gibbs.

Gibbs knew she had a point, but being as stubborn as he was, he wasn't going to let a 12-year-old get the best of him. So he went for it, and as soon as he lifted his arms higher than his shoulders, he wished he hadn't. He froze and inhaled sharply. Trisha shook her head and went to Gibbs, pulling his shirt off the rest of the way. She stepped back and gave him a look that said 'I told you so.'

"Ok, ok. I get it," Gibbs sighed. "Might as well stay and help. Seeing as how you like my hair, you can stay and wash it for me. I'll leave the shorts on… like swimming trunks."

Trisha had turned around to get fresh towels when she whipped around suddenly, "Who said I like your hair?"

"Uhhhhh…." was all Gibbs said as he looked everywhere but at Trisha's gaze.

Trisha giggled and swung the computer chair around. Gibbs got himself in the tub with a little bit of leaning on Trisha for balance.

Once Gibbs sank into the water, he felt like he was in heaven. "Ahhh, thank you," he sighed as he closed his eyes.

Trisha gave Gibbs a wash cloth and a fresh bar of soap. Gibbs scrubbed himself while Trisha sat on the sink counter and looked at a magazine.

"Hey kid, can you get my back?" Gibbs asked her.

Trisha knelt down next to the tub and took the wash cloth and soap from Gibbs, who leaned forward a little bit. Trisha scrubbed his shoulders and then lightly washed his lower back, being careful not to hit his ribs. When she was done, she got back up and went over to the sink, bringing back a large cup.

"Slide forward a little, then put your head back so I can get your hair wet," she instructed Gibbs. She placed her hand at Gibbs' hairline to keep the water from running in his eyes. After his hair was wet, she put some shampoo in her hands and began to scrub Gibbs' head. She kept it up for a good five minutes, making his hair really soapy. Then, to finish it off, she made Gibbs' hair stand up like a Mohawk. She leaned aside so Gibbs could see the mirror.

He laughed, "Funny, kid. As much as I like it, I don't think NCIS would appreciate it if I actually went to work with this hairdo."

Trisha smiled and gently pushed his head back so she could rinse the shampoo out. She got the conditioner and repeated putting it in his hair, except this time she gave him a good head rub. She drew random patterns on his head with her fingers. Gibbs just sat there with closed eyes and a smile on his face. He was disappointed when she stopped and rinsed the conditioner out.

Trisha leaned back and got the wash cloth, then dipped it into the water. She brought it up to his face and gently began to wash the dried blood away. He winced when some soap got into one of the cuts. Trisha saw it, leaned in, and gently blew air above his eyebrow to make the stinging stop.

For supposedly having an iron one, Gibbs' heart melted. He wondered how anyone could ever want to give this kid away. He made his mind up right there and then; if no one wanted this kid, then he would take her. He wouldn't hurt her like everyone else did. She could trust him; he just had to prove it to her.

When she had gotten all the blood off of his face, Trisha reached and pulled out the plug in the tub, letting the water go down the drain. When she turned around to look at Gibbs, he was already looking at her. His blue eyes sparkled and he smiled. Trisha was confused. She knew that look Gibbs was giving her; it was the same way that her real father used to look at her. Trisha's head dropped as she avoided Gibbs' eyes. She stood and turned around. Grabbing a dry towel, she turned back and knelt next to the tub to dry Gibbs' hair.

Rochelle came back into the bathroom carrying Gibbs' clean clothes. She set them down on the counter and said, "So what are we gonna have for dinner?"

Trisha looked at Rochelle. "Whatever," she muttered. "Help him," she said as left the bathroom. Trisha went to her room and slammed the door shut.

Rochelle turned to Gibbs, who looked very confused. "Holy crap, what did you do?"

Gibbs shook his head, "I have no idea." He let out a sigh, "Just help me get outta here and I'll go talk to her."

* * *

A/N: I will try and update soon, but another week of classes is coming up - which means more work. Thanks to everyone for the great reviews! 


	17. Chapter 15: So Close

**Chapter 15 - So Close**

McGee's PDA beeped an alert as a new weather forecast popped up onto the screen. McGee read it and smiled. "Guys, guess what? Apparently the storm has changed directions; it's headed for Ohio instead. It's going far enough west that most of it will miss Mohnton!" he exclaimed.

"That's great, Tim," Kate said from the front seat of the Suburban. They drove for another thirty minutes before anyone spoke.

Kate broke the silence, "Ok Tony, according to these directions, take the next left, and then it's about 5 more miles until we get to a fork in the road."

Those last five miles seemed to take forever. Tony eventually pulled the SUV to a stop and they all jumped out.

"This way!" Kate yelled as she sprinted off into the woods. She began yelling as she ran, "Gibbs! Gibbs where are you?"

'My God, she runs fast,' Tony thought as he followed Kate's tracks in the snow. McGee was right behind him; Abby and Ducky were close behind carrying blankets and a first aid kit.

Kate stopped as she made her way into a clearing. Sitting there, covered with snow, was a yellow snowmobile. Kate looked at the directions she were clutching in her fist. 'He should be around here,' she thought. "Gibbs! Can you hear me?" she yelled, then stopped and listened for any reply. There was no response.

"Kate, anything?" Tony asked as he came into the clearing where Kate was standing.

Kate shook her head as McGee came down the path, followed by Abby and Ducky. McGee could tell by the look on Kate's face that they still hadn't found any sign of Gibbs.

Kate looked down at the directions again. "This is it, there aren't anymore directions. He has to be close by!"

Tony nodded and headed off into the woods. "Ok guys, fan out," he said over his shoulder. Kate went in the opposite direction of Tony.

McGee looked at the snowmobile and made a face. "Abby, don't you think that's a little out of place?" he asked as he pointed to the sled. He walked over to it and brushed the snow off from it's frame. "This is pretty nice… and new, too. I don't think someone would just leave it out here. And those two guys never mentioned anything about snowmobiles."

Abby was about to make a smart comment to McGee when something colorful caught her eye. She walked to the edge of the clearing. "Hey guys, come take a look at this," she yelled back to McGee and Ducky. They came over to Abby as she said, "Look at this yellow rope. I think it leads down this hill," she said as she grabbed the rope and began to descend. Once she had made it to the bottom, Abby began to look around. "McGee! Get your butt down here, I think I found something!"

Ducky looked at the young field agent. "Go Timothy, I'll go get the others."

McGee backed slowly down the steep hill. "Abby?" he yelled.

"Over here!" Abby answered. "Look McGee."

McGee took the frozen rope pieces that Abby had been holding. Examining them, he noticed that someone had burned through the rope. Abby was also holding a backpack. On it were the initials 'T.L.H.'.

"Hey! Where are you two?" Tony yelled to Abby and McGee.

"Over here!" McGee answered back as Tony, Kate, andDucky came up next to them.

"Guys, I think whoever's backpack this is also left their snowmobile up there," she said as she pointed back up to the clearing. "And this rope has been burned through. But look here," she took the rope back from McGee and walked over to the tree where she had found it. "If Gibbs was tied to this tree, then someone else would have had to have burned through this rope!"

Kate shook her head in disbelief. She was positive that they would have found Gibbs out here. She was seriously beginning to think that they would never find him. "Abby, how can you be happy? We still don't know where Gibbs is. Or if he's even alive," she said as her face fell and her eyes filled with tears.

Abby went to Kate and put her hands on her shoulders. "Kate, look at me. Gibbs is alive. Someone has him. Now all we have to do is go back to those houses we passed and canvas the neighborhood. And, I mean, come on. There were only like 10 houses. He's gonna be in one of those, ok? Just believe, Kate, and The Big Man upstairs will take care of the rest," she smiled, pointing up to the sky.

Kate smiled back at Abby and hugged her. "Thanks Abby, I needed that," she whispered to her.

The team headed back in the direction of the Suburban. There were positive that it would only be a matter of time before they found their fearless leader.

* * *

A/N: Sorry guys. I couldn't do the usual 2 chapter update this time. I picked dumb classes this semester and all of the profs are evil - they find it fun to assign a lot of crap! 


	18. Chapter 16: Big Tough Marine

**Chapter 16 - Big Tough Marine**

Rochelle helped Gibbs get out of the tub. She left the bathroom as Gibbs changed back into his warm pants that were fresh out of the dryer.

'Ok,' Gibbs thought to himself, 'let's see if I can get my shirt on by myself.' He took his white T-shirt in his hands, then tried slowly raising his arms above his head. He stopped suddenly when he began to feel a dull ache in his ribs - he knew that it was a prerequisite to a much worse kind of hurt. "Hey Chelle?" Gibbs called.

Rochelle poked her head in the bathroom with her eyes closed. "What now, Gibbs? I'm not pulling up your zipper for you!"

"No, I could handle that," Gibbs said with a smirk. "But I do need help with my shirts."

Rochelle rolled her eyes at Gibbs. She went over and helped him get his T-shirt and navy blue polo over his head, then stepped back and looked up at him. "So really, what did you do that made Trisha go off like that?"

Gibbs raised his eyebrows and shook his head. "I honestly don't know. I mean, she was getting the blood off my face and some soap got into this cut," Gibbs said as he pointed to the laceration above his eyebrow. "Then I must have made a face or something because she… uh," Gibbs stopped talking and sighed. "This is too embarrassing."

"She what, Gibbs?" Chelle asked. She cocked her head to the side as a giant smile crept across her face. "Awwwww! I know what your problem is, you were a big tough Marine, so you don't think you can show your feelings! Gibbs, you're as bad as my dad! And before you ask, yes, he was a Marine."

Gibbs smiled, "Well, then you know how it is." He slowly walked past Rochelle and out of the bathroom. "Ok, so which door's Trisha's?" he asked.

"Third door on the right. Gibbs, wait!" she said as she came up next to him. She took his arm and looked up into his eyes. "Try to remember what she's been through and what I said about her. I trust you, Gibbs, but just for a couple minutes, pretend you're not that big tough Marine, ok?" Chelle smirked, "You still remember how to pretend?"

Gibbs smiled at Rochelle. "You can never get too old to pretend, kid," he said, giving her hair a quick ruffle. He turned to leave, but Chelle pulled on his hand.

"Gibbs, I..." Rochelle stopped and thought for a moment, collecting her thoughts. "Are you thinking of… adopting her?"

He didn't know what to say. Gibbs couldn't say no, but on the other hand, he didn't want to say yes right away. He needed time to think this over. How would he be able to handle his job and make time for Trisha? He needed to talk to Kate. At that point Gibbs silently cursed himself; he had completely forgotten about calling Kate and the team to let them know that he was still very much alive.

"Gibbs?" Chelle asked, bringing him back to reality.

He smiled at the little girl before him. "Which door did you say again?" Gibbs followed Rochelle's outstretched arm. He paused at Trisha's door and looked back for Rochelle, but she had gone off to do something else. 'Well Gibbs,' he thought as he brought his hand up to knock on the door, 'try not to be such a bastard this time'.

* * *

A/N: Yea, I know this one's short. I felt the need to write, but time constraints are a killer! I'm going home tomorrow to visit the family, so I won't be able to update for a couple of days. Until then, loyal readers and reviewers!


	19. Chapter 17: Trust Me

**Chapter 17 - Trust Me**

Gibbs collected himself and knocked on Trisha's door. "Trish?" he asked. When there was no reply, he tried the door knob and found that it was unlocked. He slowly opened the door and peeked inside the room. What Gibbs saw made his heart ache. Trisha was sitting on her bed hugging her pillow, gently rocking back and forth. In one hand she was holding a piece of paper. Tears were streaming down her face as she stared out the window, watching the flakes fall deftly to the already snow covered ground. Gibbs silently made his way a little closer to her. He stopped behind her, and, looking over her shoulder, realized that the paper she was holding was actually a photograph. It was old and worn, like it had been handled a thousand times. Gibbs studied the picture for a moment; it contained a woman and a man, who was holding a small girl, all seated on a porch swing. They looked incredibly happy, like they hadn't a care in the world.

Trisha sniffed, "So how long have you been standing there?" she asked Gibbs. She continued to stare out the window.

Gibbs walked around to the other side of the bed and sat down next to Trisha. "Not that long," he answered. There was a certain softness to his tone when he spoke. He nudged Trisha with his elbow. "You wanna tell my why you're mad at me? I didn't mean to make you upset."

Trisha sighed and wiped her eyes. "I'm not mad at you, Gibbs. I just… I don't even know. Sometimes certain things trigger memories," she sniffled a little, then continued on. "I know Rochelle told you about my family; I heard you ask. And then, in the bathroom, you… you looked at me the same way my real father used to. When he smiled at me, his eyes held all the love in the world. He used to tell me that I was his shining star. We would lay in our backyard and look at the stars for hours. When I fell asleep, it was in his arms. I always felt so safe with him." Trisha stopped as she tried to hold back her tears.

Gibbs put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her to him. He wrapped his other arm around her as Trisha cried into his shirt. "Shhhh, it's ok. It's all gonna be ok," he whispered as he rubbed her back.

Trisha pulled away and looked at Gibbs' face. "How can you possibly say that? I have no one. Nobody cares if I live or die, what difference does it make? Those monsters who murdered my family should have just gotten me too; it would have saved the world a whole lotta trouble…"

Gibbs took Trisha by the shoulders. "Don't say that. I know there's a certain little girl out there who would be very upset. Rochelle cares about you very much; anyone can see that."

Trisha shook her head, "That's not what I mean, Gibbs. I need someone to love me," she stated as her voice trailed off again. She hung her head as she tried to blink back more tears.

Gibbs pulled her to him again. He kissed the top of her head as she sobbed against his chest. He rested his chin on the top of her head and rubbed Trisha's back until she calmed down. Gently cupping Trisha's chin in his hand, Gibbs lifted her face. "Look at me, Trisha." Blue eyes met blue eyes. "If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be here right now. Who knows what would have happened if you hadn't found me in the woods. I owe you my life. And I'll be damned if I just stand by and watch you go through this foster care crap. You don't deserve this," he said more softly. He tucked some of her hair behind her ear. "Do you trust me, Trish?"

Trisha thought for a moment. "Yea. Yea Gibbs, I do trust you."

Gibbs smiled, "Look, if you want, and only if you want to, you can ---"

He was cut off by Rochelle as she came sprinting into Trisha's room. "Gibbs! There's five people outside on the porch who say they work with you. One is dressed like it's Halloween, and another one says his name is Tony and that you're his boss. There's another one who looks like a complete computer nerd, and an old guy who's named after a bird. And then there's a lady who showed me your picture," she said as she ran out of breath.

Gibbs smiled; his team had found him. There was no need for an awkward phone call after all. He looked down at Trisha, "We'll continue this later, ok? Right now I want you guys to meet my team."


	20. Chapter 18: Happy Reunion

**Chapter 18 - Happy Reunion**

Rochelle lead Gibbs and Trisha to the front of the house. As they passed a window, Gibbs saw his team standing on the front porch. Then, as if on cue, Kate turned and looked in. When she saw Gibbs, a giant smile spread across her face. Gibbs smiled back and gave her a little wave.

"Well, let them in," he told Rochelle. As she walked over to the front door, Gibbs took a hold of Trisha and put her in front of him.

"Hey!" Trisha said in surprise. "What do I look like, a rag doll? Geeze, Gibbs!"

"Sorry," Gibbs said as he patted her shoulder. "If I know anything about my team, then there are two ladies out there who are about to attack me. Any other time I'd say that's fine, but I'm too sore right now," he said.

Trisha tilted her head backwards and looked at Gibbs upside down. "So I have to play your shield? That's pretty low, man," she said with a smile.

"GIBBS!" Abby and Kate screamed in unison as the door was opened. Trisha's eyes got extremely wide, but she held her ground. As they made a mad dash for him, Gibbs and Trisha put up their hands in defense.

"Whoa, easy! Don't jump on me, my ribs are either broken or badly bruised!" Gibbs yelled.

At the same time, Trisha started yelling out random threats, "You touch one hair on this guy and I'll be forced to show you my mad skills!" She assumed a karate-type stance.

Between Gibbs yelling and Trisha making ninja moves, Kate and Abby had come to a complete stop. Both held very confused looks. Kate looked from Trisha up to Gibbs, then shook her head. "What?" she asked.

Gibbs smiled and put his hands on Trisha's shoulders. "Easy Killer," he said with a chuckle. He looked back at his team, who had now all come into the living room. "I was saying that I might have cracked ribs, and I just don't want you guys jumping on me, ok?" He let go of Trisha and walked to where Kate and Abby were standing.

Abby gently gave Gibbs a hug, then stepped back and looked up at him. "I thought you might have been a goner after I saw what your house looked like. We were really worried about you, boss-man."

Gibbs pulled Abby to him and lightly kissed the top of her head. He let her go, then walked towards Kate. He stopped and stood in front of her. Gibbs smiled, "Agent Todd," he said.

"Agent Gibbs," Kate replied. Her eyes welled with tears as she wrapped her arms around Gibbs. "I thought I'd never see you again. I thought you left me," she said into his chest as her tears began to flow more freely.

"Nah, just got a little sidetracked," he said softly. He lifted Kate's chin so he could look into her eyes. "I'd never leave you, Katie," he whispered as he wiped away her tears.

Gibbs and Kate stood like that; staring into each other's eyes. Gibbs' thumb was lightly caressing Kate's cheek as he held her close. Kate's left arm was wrapped around Gibbs, while her right hand rested on his chest.

Rochelle cleared her throat, "Uhhh, hey guys, are you gonna just start making out or what? Cuz if you are, just let me know. I don't wanna see that!"

Trisha rolled her eyes. "Chelle, you dork! You interrupted their moment!" she whined.

Gibbs smiled at Kate, then kissed her forehead. "I need to talk to you about something then. It's important," he told her.

Rochelle started making kissing noises, then turned to Trisha. "Sounds like our Special Agent wants a little alone time with his girlfriend, if you know what I mean!" Chelle exclaimed as she over-exaggerated a wink.

Trisha stared at her friend with her mouth open in disbelief. "I can't believe half the stuff that comes out of your mouth! You know what? I don't know you," she stated.

Rochelle laughed, "Yessssss. That means I'm doing my job!"

Everyone else laughed. Gibbs sat on the couch and Kate sat down next to him. Abby and McGee took the love sofa, and Tony and Ducky each sat in a Lay-Z Boy. Rochelle had plopped herself in the bean bag chair. Trisha walked over and sat on the other side of Gibbs, who put an arm around her. Kate leaned her head against Gibbs' shoulder.

Gibbs introduced the girls to his team, then went on to tell them everything that had happened and how he ended up at Trisha's house. Rochelle filled in some of the parts that Gibbs left out. She especially emphasized the time that Gibbs made Trisha take his boxers. That story lead into Gibbs informing everyone that Trish gave the best head rubs in the history of the world.

After Tony told Gibbs how they had found two of the guys that had broke into his house, Tony felt his stomach growl. "Ah, hey Boss. I don't mean to sound out of line here, but would it be ok if I just went and ransacked the kitchen? I haven't had anything to eat and I'm starving."

Trisha got up. "Yea, come on, Tony. I'm hungry too. Anyone else want something? We have a lot of food," she said.

Abby jumped up, "Hey, let's make a big dinner! Come on guys, everyone can help make something." After the girls, Tony, McGee, and Ducky went into the kitchen, Abby turned to Kate and Gibbs. "You guys just relax, we can take care of it!" That said, she skipped off towards the kitchen.

Kate lifted her head from Gibbs' shoulder. "So, what was it that you wanted to talk to me about?"


	21. Chapter 19: Kate's Advice

**Chapter 19 - Kate's Advice**

"We can't talk here Kate. Come on, I want to show you something," he said as he got up off the sofa. He took her hand and pulled her with him. Gibbs lead Kate back to Trisha's bedroom. "Here," Gibbs said as he picked up the photograph that Trisha had been cradling earlier. "Profile this family for me, Kate."

Kate looked at Gibbs with confusion in her eyes. "You want me to profile them just from an old photograph?"

Gibbs nodded and sat on the edge of Trisha's bed. He motioned for Kate to sit beside him. "Go ahead, profile away," he instructed her.

Kate sighed, "Ok. Well, I'd say the woman and the man are in their early thirties. The child looks to be about three to five years old. They obviously look very happy, and it's a sincere happiness. They love each other very much. You can tell because of how close together they are seated and the way the husband is holding his wife. And especially with the little girl; look at the way her father has his arm wrapped around her and how she has her arms draped around his neck. If I had to guess, I'd say that this is on a military base. You can see how all the other homes in the neighborhood are exactly the same in structure. Besides, I've been on enough bases now to know what the houses look like." Kate thought for a moment, "That's pretty much all I can tell from this picture, Gibbs. Now what does this have to do with anything?" she asked him.

Gibbs sighed and took the photo back from Kate. "Eight years ago, this family did indeed live on a Naval base. The man was a contractor for the Navy. And since it was a military base, everyone left their doors unlocked at night, you know, thinking it was a safe neighborhood." Gibbs paused, "Do you see where I'm going with this, Kate?" he asked.

"Maybe. So you're trying to tell me that someone killed this family on a Naval base, Gibbs? I don't see where…" Kate abruptly stopped talking when the realization hit her. "The little girl in the picture, is that…?" She looked into Gibbs' deep blue eyes.

He nodded. "Trisha. She was four when it happened. Someone killed her parents right in front of her. Rochelle told me all that she knew, but she said Trisha doesn't talk about it much. She bottled up. And she doesn't trust anyone anymore. When authorities couldn't find any relatives back then, she was put into foster care. I don't know who was in charge, but this kid got stuck with crappy families. Chelle told me that Trisha sometimes has these really bad nightmares, and apparently the foster parents didn't like that. So they would give her back," Gibbs said, his voice quiet, yet full of anger. "Rochelle also told me that she doesn't think Trisha has ever spent a Christmas outside of an orphanage. Everyone would put her back up for adoption right before the holidays. From what I've heard, this guy that she's living with doesn't want her anymore, either." Gibbs sighed and looked out the window. His attention turned back to Kate when he heard her sniffle.

"That's horrible, Gibbs. I would never have guessed. Trisha seemed fine out there, I mean, I would think she would be more withdrawn from things," Kate said softly as she wiped a tear off her face.

Gibbs wrapped an arm around her. "She hides it well, Kate." He pulled her closer to him and laid his cheek on her head. He took a deep breath and could smell Kate's apple blossom shampoo. Gibbs smiled as Kate nestled closer into him. "Kate?" he asked. He glanced down at her.

"Mmhmm," she responded. Her eyes were closed.

Gibbs continued, "Kate I… I really could use your advice right now."

Kate shot up and looked Gibbs straight in the eye. "You want my advice?"

"Look, there's no easy way to go about this, so I'm just gonna come right out and say it. I'm thinking of adopting Trisha," Gibbs said. "Wait, before you say anything, let me explain. This is not just some ordinary kid we're talking about here. Without Trisha, I probably wouldn't be alive right now. She saved my life. She's such a good kid, and it's not fair that she has to go through all this. I know she has some quirks, but Hell, so do I!" Silence fell between them. "Kate, talk to me. I need your opinion."

Kate took Gibbs' hand. "I'm going to be honest, Gibbs. Do you think you're going to be able to make enough time for her? I know how you are about your work," Kate stated.

Gibbs thought for a moment and nodded. "I know, but I'm willing to make sacrifices. Besides, there's you and Tony, and McGee's probationary period is almost up. You guys are more than capable of getting things done. I don't need to hold your hand every step of the way on every case anymore," Gibbs laughed, but then got serious again. "For some reason, Trisha lets her guard down around me. Rochelle pointed it out, so it's not just me saying this."

Gibbs stood up and ran a hand through his silver hair. He went over to the desk where he had put the photo, picked it up, and brought it back with him. Kate put an arm around his shoulders as he sat back down on the bed.

"Right before you guys came, Trisha had a breakdown. I was holding her and she was crying in my arms, Kate," Gibbs said softly as he stared at the little girl in the photograph. "I held her and rubbed her back until she stopped crying. And then, I made her look into my eyes. I asked her if she trusted me. She said yes, Kate. And if I can give this kid back some of the happiness she once had," he said as he pointed to the picture in his hand, "then I'm willing to sacrifice some time at the office."

Kate brought her hand up to Gibbs and ran her fingers slowly up and down the side of his face. "So much for that second 'b' in your last name," she told him as she pulled him closer. She felt his breath on her face.

Gibbs pulled Kate in the rest of the way as his lips met hers. He wrapped one arm around her and began to stroke her back with his hand. Kate's hands were running through Gibbs' hair as he pulled her closer yet and deepened their kiss.

"Hey you two dinner's ready!" Rochelle yelled as she came bursting into the room. "We made… Oh my God!" she exclaimed at the sight of Gibbs and Kate kissing on Trisha's bed. Gibbs and Kate jumped apart from each other. "Ahhhhhh! My eyes, my eyes! Help me, I'm blind! I can't see!" she cried as she turned and bolted from the room. "Trisha!" Chelle yelled as she ran down the hallway, "guess what Gibbs and Kate were doing on your bed!"

Kate smiled at Gibbs, "Well, I'd say the secret's out now. And Rule 12 has just flown out the window."

Gibbs stood and took Kate's hand. "I'll agree with that, Katie," he responded with a smirk.

"Does this mean I can call you Jethro now?" she asked as she turned to walk out the doorway.

Gibbs laughed, "We'll see," he told her as he playfully smacked her on the butt. "And if Tony makes one smart comment about us, I'll shoot him."

"Gibbs," Kate turned to him suddenly, "how are you gonna ask Trisha about the adoption thing?"

Gibbs' stomach made a loud growling noise, which caused Kate to smile. "Let's just get some dinner now, Kate. I'll think of something."


	22. Chapter 20: Food and a Warm Fire

**Chapter 20 - Food and a Warm Fire**

All eyes were on Gibbs and Kate as they strolled into the kitchen together, holding hands. Trisha had turned to get something out of the refrigerator. When she turned back around, Kate was standing directly in front of her with a warm look on her face.

Trisha raised an eyebrow. "Uhhh, can I help you?" she asked the female agent.

Kate smiled and simply pulled her into a hug. After a few moments, Kate let a very shocked Trisha go and stood in front of Gibbs, who was leaning in the kitchen doorway. Gibbs wrapped his arms around Kate's waist and pulled her back into him. He leaned his head against hers and sighed.

Ducky gave the two a warm smile, then turned to Abby and said, "It's about time."

"Amen to that, Duck-man!" Abby exclaimed. She paused for a moment, then turned to McGee and Tony. "I believe you owe me something? Pay up, you two."

Tony and McGee exchanged glances, then took out their wallets. Tony gave Abby a crisp twenty dollar bill. "Here," he sighed in defeat.

McGee pouted as he looked in his wallet. "Abby," he whined, "all I have is this twenty!" He held up the wrinkled bill and gave Abby his best puppy dog eyes.

"Sorry Timmy, that's not going to work today," she said as she snatched the money from McGee. She turned to Ducky with an outstretched hand and said, "Here's your cut, Doctor."

Ducky nodded and took the other twenty from Abby. "Pleasure doing business with you, my dear."

Rochelle started laughing, then looked at Abby. "You bet on your friends getting together? At least I never made money off of my friend's emotions. Wow, and I thought some of the stuff I did wasn't so great…"

Abby had a strange look on her face as she looked back at Chelle. "Well, now that you put it that way…"

Kate shook her head and tried to bite back laughter. "Yea Abby, how could you do such a thing? I'm hurt." She felt Gibbs chest vibrate against her back as he laughed. "Gibbs! You're supposed to play along," she retorted as she twisted in his arms to face him.

Gibbs looked down at her. "I'm too hungry to play along, Katie," he said softly as he bent over and rested his forehead against hers. He looked into Kate's brown eyes and noticed how she smiled when he used her nickname.

Meanwhile, Tony nudged McGee and leaned closer to whisper into his ear. "Watch this," he said quietly.

McGee's expression went from a look of bewilderment to that of a horrified one as Tony proceeded to make a provocative cat call whistling noise. McGee felt the hair on his neck rise as time seemed to stand still. 'Oh God Tony, what the Hell are you doing?' his mind screamed. 'You're a dead man! Gibbs is going to kill you, run, you idiot!'

Kate's eyes remained locked with Gibbs' as she felt him tense up against her. "Gibbs," she whispered, "don't." He looked at her with question in his eyes. Kate shook her head, "No, Jethro, you can't shoot, stab, break, or attack Tony in any form. Ok?"

Gibbs rolled his eyes. "Kate, I was just going to go sit at the table," he said with a twinkle in his eyes. He briefly hugged her tightly, then let go and walked towards the dinner table. When he got to where Tony was standing, he paused. Kate cleared her throat, causing Gibbs to glance back at her with his most innocent expression. Turning back to Tony, Gibbs gave him half a smile. "DiNozzo," he said simply, then continued on to the dining room.

Trisha, carrying the lasagna that she had removed from the oven, followed Gibbs to the dining room. "I hope you have a will made up, buddy," she joked as she walked past Tony. "Or at least you should sleep with one eye open for a few nights!" she called over her shoulder.

Rochelle grabbed the giant salad bowl from the counter. McGee snagged the drinks as Abby took the casserole they had also made out of the oven. Ducky brought out the garlic bread that he had made as Tony grabbed a bottle of wine. Kate grabbed a handful of napkins and headed for the rest of the team.

Dinner was rather uneventful. It mainly consisted of Rochelle and Trisha talking about their snowmobile adventures from the past. When they were finished eating, Ducky, McGee, and Tony cleared the table and put away the leftovers.

The others retired to the living room. Trisha and Rochelle had gone out to the garage. They each came back in with an armful of firewood and started a fire in the fireplace.

Abby had taken pillows and had laid down on the floor near the fireplace. When McGee came out of the kitchen, he joined her on the floor. Both Tony and Ducky again sat in a recliner and watched the fire. Rochelle had retrieved the beanbag and threw it on the floor next to McGee, then nestled into it and covered herself with a blanket. Gibbs and Kate were occupying the sofa. Kate was curled into Gibbs, who had an arm around her and was gently massaging her shoulder with his hand as he stared into the fire.

"Gibbs," Kate whispered as she stifled a yawn. "Now would be a good time," she told him as she nodded in Trisha's direction.

Trisha was seated on the love sofa by herself, looking at the flames dancing and illuminating the dark room in the process.

"I'm going to be asleep in a few minutes and I don't want to sleep on you and possibly roll on you in the middle of the night," she said, glancing down at his ribs. "Besides, Trisha needs you more than I do right now. Go talk to her."

Gibbs nodded in agreement as Kate sat up and allowed him to stand. He turned around and covered Kate with a blanket, then knelt down next to her on one knee. "What do I tell her, Katie?" he asked her earnestly.

"Just tell her how you feel, Jethro," she said with closed eyes.

Gibbs brushed her cheek with his knuckles, then leaned down and softly kissed her temple. "Night, Katie," he whispered to her already sleeping form.

He stood and walked over to where Trisha was sitting on the love seat. "Hey kiddo," he said softly, "you got room on there for me?"

* * *

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, guys. I have a few more chapters left for this one.


	23. Chapter 21: Gibbs Pops the Question

**Chapter 21 - Gibbs Pops the Question**

Trisha looked up at Gibbs and nodded. She scooted over and allowed him room to sit down next to her. She kept staring at the fire and avoided looking at Gibbs.

He noticed and frowned. "Hey, what's the matter?" he asked, putting an arm around her.

She still wouldn't look at him. "Nothing, Gibbs. Don't worry about it." Trisha felt her throat begin to tighten as tears formed in her eyes.

Gibbs reclined his side of the sofa. "Trisha," he said with a little more force. She looked at him. "Come here," he commanded as he pulled her to his chest.

Trisha rested her head on Gibbs' chest and listened to his heartbeat. She felt his hand slowly running up and down her back as she let out a deep sigh. She closed her eyes.

Gibbs reached over with his other hand and ran his fingers through Trisha's bangs. He eventually ran his hand to Trisha's shoulder and let it rest there. "Hey, you're not asleep, are you?" he asked.

Her eyes opened. "No," she answered simply. She started playing with one of the buttons on Gibbs' polo.

Gibbs nodded, "Ok. Now tell me what's wrong, kid." Trisha was quiet for a moment. He could tell she was internally debating if she really wanted to open up to him. "Come on," he urged her. "You can tell me anything." He started moving his thumb in little circles on her shoulder.

She picked her head up a little off of Gibbs' chest. "You really want to know what's bugging me, Gibbs?" she asked. "Your team found you." She fell silent again and let her words hang in the air.

Gibbs contemplated what Trisha said before he spoke. "Trisha, why does that upset you? Kate, Abby, McGee, Ducky… even Tony; they're all good people. You've got nothing to worry about."

She sighed, "No Gibbs, I know they're good people. What I mean is… well, what I said. They found you, and that's it," she paused. "Now they'll take you back to DC, and you'll get back to your job, back to your life. You'll forget all about me, even if you don't mean to," Trisha said as she sat up.

Gibbs sat up also. "Trisha--"

She cut him off, "Don't Gibbs. I'm used to it by now. It's ok." She turned and smiled at him to reassure him, but she wasn't doing such a good job.

As his eyes met the little girl's before him, his heart constricted. Her blue eyes held a world of hurt. He wouldn't have that. As Trisha moved to stand up, Gibbs gently grasped her arm and pulled her back down next to him. He put a hand on either side of her face and looked straight into her eyes. "Remember that conversation we were having in your room before Chelle came in?" Trisha nodded. "What I was going to say… I was going to ask if you wanted to come with me." Gibbs continued, "But only if you want to."

Trisha stared back at Gibbs in disbelief. She blinked hard a few times. She opened her mouth to speak, but all that she could muster was, "Wha…what?"

He smiled, "Come with me back to Washington. You said you need someone to love you, right? Let me do it. I promise, Trisha, that I won't hurt you like all the others, ok? I'll take good care of you," Gibbs rambled on.

Trisha started shaking her head up and down. "Yes," she said simply.

A giant smile ran across Gibbs' face. "Yea?" he asked.

"Well Hell yes Gibbs!" she exclaimed as Gibbs wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly. In return, Trisha wrapped her arms around Gibbs the best she could. She put her chin on Gibbs' shoulder. Tears started streaming down her face as she let out a shaky breath.

Gibbs felt her slightly shaking against him. He pulled back to look at her. "What's wrong?" he asked, wiping the tears off her face with his hand.

She smiled through her tears. "Nothing. Nothing's wrong. In fact, everything's right. Do you have any idea how happy you've just made me?" she asked Gibbs.

He smiled and leaned his forehead against hers. "You've made me just as happy, kiddo."

After a few minutes, Gibbs let Trisha go. She went over to the fireplace and put three more logs on the fire. After the fire grew, she went to the kitchen and got a drink of water. When she came back into the living room, she saw that Gibbs had laid down on the love seat. His head rested on one arm rest and his feet hung over the other. She was about to look for a spot to sleep when Gibbs spoke up.

"Come on, there's enough room on here for you, too," he told her.

Trisha wrinkled her nose, "Gibbs, you don't even fit on that thing. Where am I supposed to go?" She walked closer to him.

Gibbs scooted to the edge of the sofa. "Here," he said, "wedge yourself between me and the cushions. Just lay on your side."

She carefully climbed over Gibbs, being cautious to avoid his ribs. Trisha stopped and looked at him.

He sensed her apprehension and smiled. "You're ok, lay down." Gibbs wrapped his left arm around her as she snuggled into him. Her head rested on his chest again. He reached down and took the blanket that was sitting on the floor and covered them both.

"Night, Gibbs," Trisha mumbled as she drifted off to sleep in his arms.

He glanced down at the little girl who had fallen asleep. "Night, kiddo," he whispered. Gibbs kissed the top of her head and closed his eyes. Soon he too was fast asleep.


	24. Ch 22: Tickle Fights and Pillow Wars

**Chapter 23 - Tickle Fights and Pillow Wars**

Abby slowly opened her eyes and let herself adjust to the sunlight that was streaming in from the front windows. She looked towards her feet and saw Ducky and Tony still asleep in the recliners. As she turned her head to the right she saw McGee, who was laying on his side. His back was facing her. As Abby sat up she smiled; somewhere in the middle of the night Rochelle had rolled off the beanbag and was now snuggled against McGee, who had an arm around her.

"Abby," Kate called in a hushed whisper. She was already awake and sitting on the sofa.

Abby turned around and faced Kate. "What?"

"Shhh, not so loud!" Kate warned her. "Abby, look at Gibbs!" she said as she pointed towards the smaller sofa.

Abby's gaze turned towards where Gibbs and Trisha were sleeping. She smiled at the sight. Gibbs had slid down so that his head was no longer propped on the arm rest. Instead he was flat on his back on the cushions, which resulted in his knees hanging over the other arm rest. Trisha had buried her head in the space between Gibbs' chest and chin. His left arm was still protectively wrapped around her, and Trisha's left arm was laying across his chest. Gibbs head also rested against Trisha's. The blanket that had been covering them during the night had slipped off and was now on the floor.

"Oh my God, I just can't pass up this opportunity," Abby told Kate as she quickly but quietly went to her duffel bag by the front door. She grabbed her cell phone and switched it to the 'camera' mode, then walked back and stood in front of the still sleeping Gibbs and Trisha. 'Click!' sounded the cell phone as she snapped a picture. Abby zoomed in closer on the two, and then 'Click! Click!' went the phone as she took two more pictures. She took the cell phone over to Kate to show her.

"Awwwwww. Abby, this is priceless! I knew Gibbs had a soft spot for kids, but I never thought he'd do something like this," Kate said as she gestured towards the sofa.

"Yea, our Silver-Haired Fox does have a heart after all. I knew it all along," Abby said as she walked to the other side of McGee and snapped a picture. He still had his arm over Rochelle, who had her face flat against his chest. Abby started giggling as she snapped another picture, then walked over to Kate and showed her.

Kate made a silly face at Abby, then said, "You know, Tim will make a great father some day."

Abby smiled, "Oh, I know. I just gotta reel him in the rest of the way. Speaking of… so what's going on with you and Gibbs? Did Rochelle really walk in on you two playing tonsil hockey? And what was it like, kissing your boss? Details, Kate, I need details!" For not having a Caf-Pow in a long time, she was excessively hyper.

Kate shook her head, "We weren't playing 'tonsil hockey' as you so eloquently put it! We were having an important discussion, and one thing kind of led to another." She longingly looked over at Gibbs as her mind drifted back to the kiss they had shared the previous evening. The way he looked at her, the way he touched her, the way she melted when he used her nickname…

"Look at you!" Abby exclaimed. "You've got it bad!"

Kate gave her a shy smile and was about to speak, when, from the recliner, Tony began to sing. "Kate and Gibbs, sittin' in a tree, k-i-s-s-i…"

Kate grabbed a pillow and hurled it at his head. Tony threw it back, but instead it hit Abby, then bounced off and landed on McGee and Rochelle.

McGee, still half asleep, moaned, "Uhhhhhh, go away!" He felt a warm body pressed against his chest and was a little surprised. McGee looked down and smiled sheepishly.

Rochelle was looking up at him with big eyes. Needless to say, she was just as surprised as McGee. "Um… hi?" she said. "Sorry, I uhhh…" She tried to get away from McGee, but he still had his arm wrapped around her.

McGee raised his eyebrows. "Oh no you don't!" he exclaimed as he began tickling her.

"Arrghhhh!" Rochelle started yelling between giggles. "Someone…help!" she pleaded as McGee relentlessly attacked her.

Abby went to Chelle's aid as she knelt on the floor and dove onto McGee. "Why don't you pick on someone your own size, Timmy?"

McGee paused just long enough for Rochelle to wiggle free of his grasp. She army-rolled away from him and into the clear.

"Oh, someone my own size, huh?" In a flash, McGee flipped Abby off of him and began to tickle attack her instead.

"Noooo!" Abby wailed between gasps.

Somewhere in there, Ducky had awoken and had left the recliner in search of the bathroom. Kate and Rochelle now had their full attention on Abby and McGee as they rolled around the floor. Unfortunately, Tony noticed and made a swift lunge towards them.

Kate and Rochelle simply parted, but not before Kate stuck out her foot, causing Tony to trip head first onto the couch. They immediately grabbed pillows and started hitting Tony with them. "DiNozzo, you creep!" Kate yelled. "You deserve this!"

"Man down," Tony yelled. "Man down! Quit hitting the defenseless!" He grabbed a cushion off the couch and started using it as a shield.

Meanwhile on the smaller sofa, all the commotion had woken up Gibbs and Trisha. They watched the whole scene taking place before them, although Gibbs was looking at Kate more than anyone else. Trisha noticed where Gibbs was staring and started laughing.

Gibbs turned his attention to Trisha. "Don't laugh kid, it only provokes them," he advised her.

Trisha laughed some more, "I'm laughing at you!" she exclaimed.

He gave her a puzzled look. "Me? What did I do?"

"If you're gonna stare at Kate's butt, you should do it more discreetly, Gibbs!" she said in a quieter voice.

Gibbs thought for a moment before he smiled. "I'm her boss, I'm allowed to look wherever I want. Besides," he told Trisha, "last night we were--"

"No Gibbs!" Trisha cried. "I don't want to hear that!" She pressed her one ear against his chest and covered the other with her hand.

Gibbs chuckled and ruffled Trisha's hair, then gently began to run his hand through it. He smiled when he realized that Trisha had become very quiet and relaxed. He glanced down at her; she was staring straight ahead, as if in a trance. Gibbs kept it up for a few minutes, then let his hand rest on her shoulder.

"Hey Gibbs, don't you think you should stop them or something?" Trish asked, nodding towards the ruckus going on before them.

"Nahh, let them work it out. Besides," he said, "this is better than them shooting each other. Don't you think?"

She nodded in agreement, "Yea, I'd say so."

Gibbs sighed, "Come on, kiddo. Let's go get some breakfast."

* * *

A/N: This isn't exactly what I had in mind for this chapter, but once the idea popped into my head, I just kinda ran with it. Hope you guys like it! 


	25. Chapter 23: Tony Wants to Know

**Chapter 23 - Tony Wants to Know**

After they had both paid a trip to the bathroom, Trisha and Gibbs made their way into the kitchen. Trisha was about to pour some Cocoa Puffs into a bowl when Gibbs stopped her.

"Tell you what," he said. "Let me make you something for breakfast."

Trisha smiled and wrinkled up her nose. "You can cook? Are you sure that's such a good idea?" She climbed up and sat down on a stool, then leaned her elbows on the granite top of the island.

Gibbs made a face at her, "Why doesn't anyone think I can cook?" He turned to the cupboards and started to look through the food.

She thought for a moment before answering him. "I dunno. You just seem more like a nuke it kind of guy."

Gibbs stopped searching the cabinets and looked over his shoulder at Trisha. "A what kind of guy?"

"Nuke it. You know, the kind of guy who sticks frozen food in the microwave and then nukes it on high for a minute. It doesn't matter if it's still frozen; after a minute's up you eat it. It's mainly seen in guys who don't have any patience," Trisha said.

Gibbs turned around and leaned on the island. "And how do you know that I don't have any patience?" He brought his head down to Trisha's level and gave her his best interrogation face. Much to Gibbs' surprise, his cold stare was returned. They both leaned closer to each other until their foreheads were touching.

Finally, Trisha spoke. "Does your tough-and-scary face always work, Special Agent Gibbs?" She leaned back and folded her arms across her chest.

Gibbs smirked, "Well, yea, now that you mention it. Except on Kate. It did at first, but now she just laughs at me when I try to pull it on her. I guess I'm losing my edge," he said as he pouted. He hung his head and dejectedly sighed as he turned back towards the cabinets.

Trisha got off the stool and made her way to Gibbs. She tugged on his pants until he looked at her. She gave him the 'come here' motion with her index finger.

He knelt in front of her on one knee. "What?" Gibbs asked as sadly as he could make it.

She put a hand on each of his shoulders and smiled at him. "You're still my big tough agent, you know." Trisha leaned in and gave him a quick kiss on his cheek.

In turn, Gibbs kissed her forehead and wrapped his arms around her.

"By the way," Trisha said as her chin rested on his shoulder, "there's nothing wrong with your ability to make people take a massive guilt trip!"

Gibbs laughed quietly, "I have plenty of other good qualities like that." He patted her back and then stood up. "Now, what do you want for breakfast? I can make you eggs, pancakes, waffles…"

Trisha's eyes lit up. "Pancakes!"

Gibbs nodded, "Pancakes it is. Come on, you can help me make them." He searched around the kitchen until he found all the ingredients, then dumped them into a bowl.

Trisha climbed up on a stool as Gibbs handed her the bowl to mix the pancake batter. "Make sure you mix it up real good so there aren't any chunks in there," Gibbs told her.

She really went to town and mixed the batter for about five minutes. Gibbs went to the stove and turned it on, then got a pan and put butter in it so the batter wouldn't stick to the Teflon.

"Is this good, Gibbs? Because I think my arm is gonna fall off if I don't stop soon," she told him as she tilted the bowl towards him.

Gibbs smiled, "That's perfect." He took the bowl from her and walked back to the stove. "Bring the stool over here so you can help," he instructed Trish.

Trisha and Gibbs were so engrossed in what they were doing that neither had noticed Tony and Kate watching them from the kitchen doorway. They simply stood there and watched the domestic scene taking place. Kate had a big grin across her face, but as Tony watched the interaction between his boss and the little girl, he got to thinking.

"Kate," he whispered. "Can I talk to you for a minute?" He pulled her into the living room. "Ok, I know that Rochelle and Trisha saved Gibbs' life, but why did he take such a liking to Trisha and not Chelle? And another thing, this is where Trisha lives, right? Well, why aren't there any adults around? Doesn't this seem a little weird to you?"

"Tony, slow down. I uh, I…" Kate stammered as she tried to think of something to tell him. She was sure Gibbs would tell everyone when the time was right; she didn't want to be the one to blurt out the news that their normally bastard-of-a-boss was about to adopt a twelve year old girl. Besides, it wasn't her place to do so. "I don't know what you're talking about, Tony," she stated.

"Come on, Kate!" he exclaimed a little too loudly, which drew unwanted attention from the others who were watching the morning news. "You know, you were never good at lying to people," he declared as he put his hands on his hips. "I know when something's up!"

Rochelle, who had been leaning against McGee on the sofa, went over and stood between the fuming Tony and Kate. "Whoa, guys, take it easy! What's goin' on?" she asked as she looked between the two.

"I'll tell you what's wrong!" Kate exclaimed. "Tony doesn't know how to keep his nose out of other people's business!"

Tony was pissed off beyond belief. "Partners are supposed to tell each other everything, Kate! I want to know what the hell is going on with Gibbs, and don't tell me you don't know!"

Just then Gibbs came storming out of the kitchen. "What the hell's the matter with you, DiNozzo?"

"Boss, I uh, I was just wondering…" he stammered as Gibbs drew closer.

"You wanna know something about me, then you ask _me_! You don't go behind my back and try to get it out of other people, you got it? If you do something like this again, I'll put my boot so far up your a--" He censored himself when, out of the corner of his eye, Gibbs saw Trisha standing in the kitchen doorway.

He looked at her for a moment, then gave her a reassuring smile. "Come here, kiddo." When Trisha reached Gibbs, he took her hand and led her to the couch. Kate sat on the other side of him. Gibbs turned to Trisha, "Tony here wants to know what's up, and I'm pretty sure the rest of my team wants to know, too." He put a comforting arm around her shoulders. "You wanna tell them?" he asked Trisha with a smile.

Trisha smiled back at him and took a deep breath. She looked at the people before her and said, "Gibbs is gonna be my new dad."


	26. Chapter 24: Not Out of the Woods Yet

**Chapter 24 - Not Out of the Woods Yet**

No one moved; no one said anything. Tony, Ducky, Abby, and McGee's jaws had pretty much hit the floor. Rochelle was the first one to move. Perhaps she was the first to even breathe after Trisha's announcement, for that matter.

"Does this mean I get to call you Uncle Gibbs now?" Rochelle asked as she got up from the beanbag she had been occupying. She thought for a moment before bounding to Gibbs and giving him a hug. "Thank you," she whispered to him before she pulled away. "And I guess I call you Aunt Kate then, huh?" Chelle said as she turned in Kate's direction. "Yea, you know, since that image of you and Gibbs making out is probably gonna be forever burned into my subconscious." She smiled when Kate narrowed her eyes at her, then went and settled back into the beanbag.

Tony had finally composed himself, but was still rather confused. "Wait a minute Boss… so you're going to adopt Trisha?"

Gibbs had wrapped his other arm around Kate. He pulled both her and Trisha closer to his body and sighed angrily at Tony. "Well, no DiNozzo. I'm going to kidnap her and keep her in my basement with my boat. What do you think?"

Tony hung his head, "Ah, yea, good point Boss."

Trisha raised an eyebrow and looked at Gibbs. "Wait, you have a boat… in your basement? How'd it end up in there?"

He winked at Trisha and then reached up and tousled her hair. "Go on and take a shower, then start getting your bags packed. Chelle will help you," Gibbs told her.

Rochelle piped up from the beanbag, "Oh, will I now, Uncle Gibbs?"

Gibbs raised both of his eyebrows at her, "Yea, you will. Unless you want to walk home after we leave." He tilted his head and smiled at her.

Chelle made a mean face at Gibbs. "That's so not cool," she whined as she followed Trisha.

Gibbs sighed and settled back against the sofa. Kate snuggled into him then brought her hand up to his chest and gently began to massage his muscles. He smiled and leaned his head against hers, then closed his eyes.

"So, Jethro, just what has inspired you to adopt that little girl? Aside from the obvious fact that she saved your life, of course," Ducky asked from his seat on the recliner.

"Yea Boss-man, you're gonna be a daddy! Wait, you do realize that, right?" Abby piped up.

Gibbs opened his eyes and looked into the fire that Tony had relit earlier. "Trisha's different, Duck. And she's been through a lot. I'm not going into details, but when she was younger she lost her family. She got stuck in foster care and her life's been hell ever since." He ran a hand over his face and through his silver hair. "I have the chance to give that kid a better life. And I know this is going to be challenging, so I could really use everyone's help with this," Gibbs said as he stared at a spot on the beige carpet.

"Boss, are you sure you're feeling ok? I mean, first you and Kate start… well not like there's anything wrong with that," McGee started rambling as Gibbs stared at him. "And then you and Trisha were cuddling on the couch, and now you're asking us for help, and--"

"McGee!" Gibbs interrupted him. "Do you have a point?"

Abby punched McGee in the arm. "What he _meant_ to say is that we'll back you on this decision one hundred percent, right McGee?"

"Ow Abby!" McGee exclaimed. "And yes, Boss," he added.

Abby turned around to Tony and Ducky. "What about you guys, you in?" She gave them both a face that read 'I swear to God if both of you don't say yes…'

"Of course, my dear. Perhaps Trisha could come to the house sometime and have tea. This reminds me of the time when--" Ducky began, but Tony cut him off.

"I'm here for ya, Gibbs. We all are; we're a team," Tony stated.

Gibbs smiled, "I appreciate it. Now enough with this sappy crap; McGee!" Gibbs barked. "I need you to get on the phone and find out what paperwork needs to be done to get this adoption thing going. Have everything faxed to the office. Tony, go dig the car you drove here out of the snow," he instructed.

"But Gibbs," Tony pleaded, "why can't I make the phone calls?"

"DiNozzo, did that sound like a suggestion to you?" Gibbs raised his voice and stood up threateningly, forgetting about his injuries.

"On it, Boss," Tony called over his shoulder as he ran to the door.

Gibbs quickly sank back down onto the couch. He let out a low moan as he felt a sharp pain in his ribs.

Kate's eyes got extremely wide. "Gibbs? What's wrong?" She put an arm around his back as he grabbed the cushion of the couch and held it tightly. "Ducky, do something!" Kate cried loudly before she realized that the doctor was already standing right in front of Gibbs. Abby was next to him with a concerned look on her face. She had placed a hand on Gibbs' knee.

"Jethro," Ducky said. "I need you to relax and lay down." When Gibbs didn't budge, Ducky put his hands on his shoulders and pushed him backwards so that his head rested in Kate's lap. Kate had one hand in the middle of Gibbs' chest, while the other ran through his hair.

"Jethro, listen to me. You need to get your breathing under control," Ducky advised him.

"Get… Trisha…." Gibbs gasped.

"I'm right here, Gibbs," a voice said from around the corner. Trisha knelt down in front of the sofa where Gibbs was. He reached for her and grabbed the back of her shirt. Trisha wedged a hand under Gibbs' body and placed it in the middle of his upper back, thenput her other hand on his chest as she said, "Remember what we did earlier, Gibbs. Concentrate on my voice now and breath in. Good, now let it out. You're doing good Gibbs, that's it."

Eventually Gibbs calmed down. He was still gripping Trisha's shirt as she comfortingly ran her hand back and forth across his chest.

Kate had her hand running through his hair. "Gibbs," Kate said timidly, "are you ok?"

He looked up at her as a tear made its way down her face. "It's ok, Katie." He whispered to her as he slowly sat up with Ducky and Abby's help. "I'm ok, please don't cry. It's fine Katie, I promise," he told her as he wiped the tears off her face.

"We should really have you checked out at a hospital, Jethro," Ducky told him. Kate, Abby, and Trisha all nodded in agreement.

"I've just about got all my stuff packed," Trisha stated. "I'll go finish and get it in the car, and then we'll get outta here, ok guys?" she asked the group before her.

"That's fine, kiddo," Gibbs told her. He reached a hand for her and brought her closer as he gave her a kiss on her forehead. Much to everyone's surprise, Kate reached for Trisha and planted a big one on her forehead as well.


	27. Chapter 25: On the Road Again

**Chapter 25 - On the Road Again**

"Boss, I've gotten all the necessary paperwork waiting for us at headquarters. I'm also supposed to tell you that the Director has taken care of notifying Trisha's current… well, technically ex-foster father. Everything's good to go," McGee reported. He stood there with a smile on his face as if waiting for Gibbs to throw him a treat for a job well done.

Gibbs thought about giving him a sarcastic comment, but ultimately decided against it. "That's a good job, McGee," he said instead. "Now go help Trisha and DiNozzo get the rest of her stuff into the truck."

McGee nodded, "On it, Boss." He turned and briskly walked out the front door, quietly shutting it behind him.

Letting his head fall against the back of the couch, Gibbs sighed deeply. His ribs ached and he was drained from his little episode only half an hour earlier. He un-tucked his shirts from his pants and pulled them up to look down at his ribs. Instead of the normal skin color, the area from the bottom of his breast bone to the top of his pants was one giant deep-purple bruise. He grunted as he lifted his legs onto the couch and laid down. Gibbs felt a draft of cold air and looked towards the door; whoever went outside last had left the door cracked. He could hear Tony and McGee fighting with each other as they packed the car:

"Quit throwing snow at me, Tony!"

"Fight back and stop acting like a sissy, Probie!"

"What the hell, Tony? That wasn't even snow! You hit me with a ball of ice!"

Gibbs smiled as he pictured Tony and McGee throwing snow at each other. Deep down, both of them were really just two overgrown kids. He made a mental note to kick both their asses later; after he could standup without evoking pain in his body. Gibbs heard light footsteps on the porch followed by the door closing. He sensed someone standing in his personal space and opened his eyes to find Kate kneeling next to him.

She was looking at the bruises on his body. "Oh Gibbs," Kate whispered. Her bottom lip trembled as she continued to look at the contusions. Her gaze wandered to Gibbs' face as she searched his icy blue eyes. "Why didn't you tell me how bad you were hurt?" She lovingly stroked his cheek as her other hand found his. Kate then entwined her fingers with his and held on tightly as she waited for his response.

"Because I didn't want you to be scared," Gibbs told Kate. "It's not as bad as it looks," he said as he pulled his shirts back down. "I'll be fine, I'm just gonna need a little time to heal, ok?" Gibbs reached for Kate to bring her closer. She rested her head on his shoulder as he wrapped his arm around her and began to caress her back. "You know," Gibbs whispered, "the only thing that kept me going when I was out there was… thinking of you, Katie."

Kate's head shot up after Gibbs' last comment. She searched his face with her brown tear-filled eyes before she bent down to meet his lips to share a passionate kiss. She began running her hand through his hair as Gibbs pulled her head closer. They broke apart when their lungs screamed for air. Gibbs gently kissed Kate's forehead before she let her head fall back to his shoulder.

"Katie," Gibbs whispered. "I think we have an audience," he said with a smile as Kate picked her head up. Trisha stood at the end of a couch with a humble smile on her face.

"Sorry," Kate apologized sheepishly.

Trisha rolled her eyes. "Oh come on, my name's not Rochelle, you know. I'm not gonna get grossed out by you two kissing. I think it's cute. My mom and dad used to be the same way," she told them as she got a far away look in her eyes. Trisha shook her head, "Anyway, we're ready to leave. We're gonna meet Rochelle's dad at the hospital when we stop for you to get checked out," Trisha declared as she pointed at Gibbs.

Gibbs sat up slowly with Kate's help. He got an annoyed look on his face before he turned to Trisha. "Why can't we just stop at a hospital when we get back to DC?"

"Because I said so, Jethro," Ducky stated as he walked through the front door. "Come then, young Anthony has the Suburban warmed up." He turned around and headed for the car.

Gibbs and Kate walked past Trisha and towards the front door. Gibbs stopped and turned abruptly to see the little girl looking around the living room. "Hey," he said. Trisha turned to him. "You still wanna do this?"

A giant smile crossed her face, "You bet, Agent Gibbs." She walked to him and took his outstretched hand.

Gibbs smiled down at her before reaching for Kate and taking her hand as well. Together they walked through the front door and to the Suburban. Trisha climbed into the very back with Rochelle and McGee. Kate, Gibbs, and Abby sat in the middle row. Ducky was in the passenger seat reading the directions to the hospital to Tony, who was driving.

After they were on the road for a few minutes, Tony glanced in the rearview mirror and noticed that Gibbs and Kate were holding hands. Gibbs looked very uncomfortable; like he was in pain. Every time the truck went over a bump he would grimace. Tony put his eyes back on the road and tried to avoid the potholes, but they were currently traveling on a very uneven and unpaved road. An idea popped into Tony's head. "Hey Trish, you know those head rubs that Gibbs was telling us about?"

"Yea, what about them?" Trisha asked from the backseat. She looked in the rearview mirror to see Tony's reflection.

As the truck went over a large bump, Gibbs drew in a sharp breath. "I think someone could use one right about now," Tony told her as he nodded his head in Gibbs' direction.

Trisha nodded and switched seats with Rochelle. She was now in the middle of the backseat and directly behind Gibbs. She moved to the edge of the seat and leaned forward. Abby had taken Gibbs' other hand and was holding it tightly.

"Hey big guy," Trisha whispered as she began to run her hand through Gibbs' hair. "How ya doin up there, hmmm?" She continued running her hands gently through his hair.

Tony slowed the truck down, "Ummm, big bump coming up, hang on Gibbs." Abby and Kate felt Gibbs' grip on their hands tighten as he gritted his teeth and braced himself. Gibbs let out a small cry as the truck was jolted up and down.

"And that is exactly why we're not waiting until we get back to Washington to go to a hospital, Jethro," Ducky said matter-of-factly.

Because of the way the truck was made, the back seat was higher up than the middle seat, which allowed Gibbs to lean his head back and rest it on Trisha's shoulder. She leaned her head against his and kept rubbing his head with one hand. Trisha let her other hand move to Gibbs' chest and began to draw circles with her fingers. As she began to do so, Gibbs let out a content sigh.

"Hey Boss, we're only about 15 minutes away, alright?" No answer. "Boss?" Tony asked again.

Abby glanced at Gibbs and Trisha before meeting eyes with Kate and smiling. "He's asleep, Tony," Abby told him.

Tony glanced into the mirror to look at Gibbs, who was indeed sleeping. He watched in amazement as Trisha continued to stroke Gibbs' head and chest. Trisha looked into the mirror and met Tony's eyes. She grinned at him and he smiled back. 'Gibbs was right,' Tony thought to himself, 'that kid is different.'

"It's the next right, Anthony," Ducky said as he read the directions in his hand.

"Gotcha Ducky," Tony replied as he pulled into the hospital parking lot and guided the truck towards the front doors.


	28. Chapter 26: Introductions

**Chapter 26 - Introductions**

Ducky turned around from the passenger's seat, "I'll go in ahead of you and see if I can find anyone I might know. Caitlin, would you mind accompanying me to perhaps flash your badge around so we could speed this process along?" Ducky climbed out of the truck before saying, "And do wake up Jethro," he said with a smile. Once Kate was beside him, Ducky took her arm to escort her into the hospital in a true gentlemanly fashion.

Back inside the Suburban, Tony, McGee, and Abby were ready to go into rock-paper-scissors to see who had to wake up Gibbs.

"I'm not waking him up!" McGee declared. "He already hates me as so as it is, why make him want to annihilate me more?" Rochelle started giggling next to McGee. "Oh you think that's funny, huh?" Rochelle nodded, causing McGee to let out an exasperated sigh. "Guuyyyys," he whined.

"No way in hell am I waking him up. I'm outta here," Tony said as he bailed from the truck.

Abby cracked her door and yelled after him in a hushed whisper, "Tony, that's so not fair!" She gently closed the car door and turned around to face the backseat. "Well, looks like you get to wake him up, Timmy!"

McGee's eyes got wide, "What? Why me?"

"Well, you're the field agent. I'm just a lab tech," she responded with a sly smile.

"All right, I've heard enough," Trisha uttered as she climbed over the seat and next to Gibbs. "He's not going to kill anyone just because you wake him up."

McGee shook his head, "You don't know Gibbs like we do. He's like a bear; gentle when he's sleeping and a lean mean killing machine when he's awake. He'll go straight for your throat if you wake him up. I'm warning you kid, don't do it."

Trisha rolled her eyes at McGee, "Watch me," she said simply. She turned her full attention to the sleeping agent next to her. "Gibbs," she gently called. Trisha put a hand on his shoulder and shook him lightly. "Come on, Gibbs, you gotta wake up," she said louder.

Gibbs opened his eyes and grabbed Trisha's throat. He turned his head so that only Trisha could see his face and winked. To everyone else, it looked like he had a death grip on her neck, but in reality, he was being quite gentle. Trisha reached up and grabbed Gibbs' giant hand with both of her small ones.

"Gibbs, come on man, don't do this," Trisha fake-pleaded for her life.

"You shouldn't have woken me up," he growled in response with half a grin on his face. "Now you'll have to pay!"

"Oh my God!" Abby cried. "McGee, do something!"

Gibbs turned and looked from McGee and then back to Abby. "If either one of you moves, she dies!" They froze. Gibbs turned back to Trisha and smiled. He mouthed the words 'die now' to her and pretended to tighten his grip around her throat. In response, Trisha made gasping and gurgling noises. She rolled her eyes back into her head and went limp.

"Boss, come on Boss, what are you doing? That kid loves you, what's wrong with you?" McGee started yelling.

Gibbs turned around to look at McGee and sounded a low, evil laugh. "Why didn't you try and stop me, McGee? It's all your fault!"

Just then Kate yanked the car door open. "Hey Ducky found some doctor he knows so we can get…" her voice trailed off as she saw what she presumed to be the dead body of Trisha with Gibbs' hand wrapped tightly around her throat. Her eyes grew wide.

Trisha opened her eyes and popped up with Gibbs' hand still on her neck. "Oh, hey Kate. Did you say that someone will see Gibbs now?"

Speechless, Kate just nodded. She looked from Abby and then to McGee and noticed that their mouths were gaping open in a state of shock.

"Awesome," Trish replied. "Come on, Gibbs," she said as she turned and tugged on his arm.

Gibbs let go of her throat and planted a kiss on her head. "Good acting, kiddo," he told her. He slowly made his way out of the truck with a hand on Trisha's shoulder. Once outside, he turned around to face Abby and McGee. He looked back and forth between the two, smiled, and slammed the door shut.

"What was that back there?" Kate asked incredulously as the three made their way into the hospital.

Trisha sighed and looked up to Kate, "No one wanted to wake up Gibbs, so I was about to do it. Then McGee told me not to because Gibbs here is a regular killing machine who would go straight for my throat if I woke him up." She started giggling. "So he did, and he killed me!"

Kate looked at Gibbs, "That's not really nice, you know. Did you see the looks on their faces?"

"Well yea, Kate. That was kinda the point," he stated.

"You really make me wonder sometimes, Leroy Jethro Gibbs," Kate laughed.

They walked into the waiting room to find Ducky talking with a short bald man in a white doctor's coat. He was sporting a black goatee. "Ah yes, here he is now. Dr. Williams, this is Special Agent Gibbs," Ducky introduced them.

Dr. Williams held out a hand, "Nice to meet you, sir." He looked down to Trisha and stuck out his hand for her to shake. "And you must be his daughter?" he asked.

Trisha gave the doctor a weird look before glancing up to Gibbs. "Uhhh…" she replied.

Gibbs put his hand on Trisha's shoulders and gave her a reassuring smile before looking at the doctor. "Yup, this is my daughter Trish. She's a little shy sometimes," he told him.

Dr. Williams patted Trisha's head, "Don't worry, I'll take good care of your dad. Now, if you'll follow me Agent Gibbs. This shouldn't take very long, I just want to take a few X-rays." He turned back to the others, "You can wait here if you like. There's also a cafeteria down the hall in case you need anything to eat," he said as he walked out the door with Gibbs on his heels.

Trisha watched Gibbs walk down the hall until he followed the doctor into another room. She came back and sat down next to Kate and Ducky sporting a giant smile.

Kate took notice to the look on Trisha's face. "Hey, what are you smilin' at?" she asked her.

Trisha turned to Kate with a gleeful look in her eyes. "Didn't you hear? Gibbs just called me his daughter!"

Ducky met Kate's eyes and grinned. "You know Trisha," he started. "This reminds me of the time when…"


	29. Chapter 27: Doctor's Orders

**Chapter 27 - Doctor's Orders**

Ducky was in the thirtieth minute of his story. McGee, Abby, and Rochelle were off in the cafeteria. Kate was snoozing in a waiting room chair and Trisha was feigning interest in Ducky's tale. Ducky finally stopped talking when Dr. Williams and Gibbs walked back into the waiting room. Gibbs, who was now wearing one of those green shirts the doctors wore, plunked down next to Kate and locked his fingers with hers.

She sleepily opened her eyes and smiled at him. "So, what's the verdict Gibbs?"

"Everything's fine, nothing to worry about," he told Kate.

Dr. Williams sighed and turned to Ducky. "Is Agent Gibbs always so stubborn?" he asked the medical examiner.

"Yes, I'm afraid so, Doctor. Would you be so kind as to divulge us with the real diagnosis?" Ducky inquired.

Dr. Williams nodded, "The X-rays all came back negative for any fractures or breaks. I must say, however, that this is one of the worst cases of bruising over the rib cage that I have ever seen. To tell you the truth, I have no idea how Agent Gibbs didn't even sustain so much as a hairline fracture. He did manage to come away with a slight concussion from the knock on the head he received. I also gave himseven stitches to fix the laceration above his eyebrow. I have a pain killer prescription here for Oxy-codone and I actually administered a local anesthetic to his ribs to hold him over until you can get this prescription filled out."

Ducky took the prescription from Dr. Williams and read it over. He nodded in agreement when he got to the end of the paper, then looked up to the doctor. "What about returning to work - how long should he take off?"

Dr. Williams thought for a moment, "I'd say between three to three and a half weeks until he can return to active duty. No strenuous activity until then." He looked directly at Gibbs and Kate before walking to them. "There is no room for negotiations, Agent Gibbs. You cannot afford to be hit on the head, let alone the ribs, anytime soon. No matter how much you deny your injuries, they are still there. If you were to get hit again, and with the way your ribs are weakened, there's no telling what the consequences would be. But I can assure you that they wouldn't be pretty. Do you understand me?"

Gibbs met the doctor's gaze with a cold stare before Kate hit him on the arm. "Oh he understands perfectly, don't you, Agent Gibbs?" Kate glared at Gibbs until he accepted defeat.

"Yea, I get it," he muttered.

"Very good, Agent Gibbs," Dr. Williams stated. "Now, Agent Todd, this is where you come in. Honey," he said to Trisha, "pay attention to this, too. You can do this if Agent Todd is unavailable, ok? Come over here next to your dad."

Trisha nodded and got up. She went to the unoccupied chair next to Gibbs and sat on the edge of it. Gibbs reached over and ruffled her hair.

Dr. Williams had Gibbs sit on the edge of the chair and pull up the green scrub shirt he was wearing. An ACE bandage was snugly wrapped around Gibbs' ribs. The doctor removed the bandage. "Alright," he said, holding up a large white pad. "This is a single-use heating pad. I'll be giving you a large supply of them before you leave. I've found that these actually help along the healing process and also help to relax the muscles. The R.I.C.E. method doesn't always work, you know."

Kate wrinkled her nose, "The rice method?"

Dr. Williams was about to explain when Trisha chipped in. "Yea, R.I.C.E. stands for Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation," she said matter-of-factly.

Ducky smiled, "Why how did you know about that, my dear?"

Trisha rolled her eyes, "I've had more sports injuries than I care to remember."

Dr. Williams smiled and nodded. "Right. Anyway, take one of these pads and place it in the middle of his body like so," the doctor said as he demonstrated. "Hold it in place with one hand, but be sure not to press too hard. Now simply wrap Agent Gibbs back up with the ACE bandage. Again, don't make it too tight or it will be uncomfortable. Lastly, take a piece of white adhesive tape, about 5 inches long, and place it partially on the end of the bandage like this. That's all there is to it. Not too difficult, right?"

"Got it," Kate and Trisha said in unison.

"Good, now wait here for a minute and I'll go get everything you need." Dr. Williams walked out of the waiting room and down the hall. He ducked into a supply closet.

"Can I put my shirt down now?" Gibbs asked. "People are looking at me funny."

Trisha snorted softly, "Yea, that's probably because they can't comprehend how furry you are, Gibbs!"

Gibbs pretended to look hurt. "I am not _that_ hairy!"

Dr. Williams came back into the waiting room and handed Kate a bag filled with bandages, tape, and heating pads. He gave her a few more instructions before shaking everyones hands and getting back to work.

Gibbs, Kate, Trisha, and Ducky all walked out of the waiting room together. They found McGee, Abby, and Rochelle waiting for them in the lobby.

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A/N: All good things must eventually come to an end, lol. Only one chapter to go with this story. I hope everyone enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it! As always, the reviews are greatly appreciated.


	30. Chapter 28: Goodbye, Friend

**Chapter 28 - Goodbye, Friend**

Gibbs glanced around the lobby and noticed that Tony was no where to be found. "Where's DiNozzo?" he barked at McGee.

Abby made a 'pffft' noise as she rolled her eyes. "He found some hott nurse to harass. I told him to be back here by 2pm. Or 1400, sir!" she mocked Gibbs. In turn he glared at her.

Trisha glanced around the waiting room only to find her friend missing. "Hey guys," she said to Abby and McGee, "where's Rochelle?"

"Actually, Tony isn't harassing a nurse… well not at the moment, he did that first. But Rochelle's dad came and Tony took them to get Chelle's bag from the truck. She said she'd be waiting for you out there," McGee said softly.

Gibbs placed his hand on Trisha's shoulder and gently squeezed it. "Hey," he said. Trisha looked up to him. "You want us to come with you?"

Trisha looked at the lobby floor and shook her head. "No, Gibbs. This is something I gotta do by myself." She shook loose of Gibbs' grip and headed for the hospital exit.

Gibbs let her walk out the doors before he started after her. The rest followed as Kate jogged to Gibbs' side and took a hold of his hand. Once outside, they paused on the sidewalk as Tony came and stood beside them.

When Kate glanced at him Tony simply said, "Thought I'd give the kid some privacy."

Gibbs gently put his arm around Kate. "I have no idea how she's doing this, you know," he whispered to her. When Kate looked at him quizzically, Gibbs continued on. "Rochelle's the closest thing that that kid's had to real family for the past three years. And she's just gotta up and say goodbye to her. And for what? Me? I don't get it, Kate," he said softly.

She smiled at him. "What's not to get? Trisha obviously cares for you very much. But more importantly," Kate said, "she trusts you. And I know you won't break that trust, Gibbs." She leaned into Gibbs as he tightened his grip around her and sighed.

The team stood together on the sidewalk in silence. They all watched Rochelle and Trisha joking around with each other.

Chelle's dad had climbed into his white Excursion after saying his goodbye. He was never one for emotions. Rochelle and Trisha now stood by the passenger's side door and looked everywhere but at each other. "Let's go, Chelle! Your brother has to be at his basketball game!" her dad called out to her.

Rochelle looked back to Trisha. "So, this is really it then, huh?"

Trisha nodded, "Yea." She paused a moment to collect her thoughts. "You know I wouldn't be doing this if I didn't think Gibbs was the right person… I mean, I _am_ doing the right thing, aren't I?" She stared back at Rochelle.

Chelle nodded enthusiastically. "Oh yea. Gibbs is a great guy, and he cares about you a ton. And look at those people, Trish." Both of them turned their heads to look at the group on the sidewalk. "Not only are you getting Gibbs, but you're getting an entire family! You can't pass that up. You might not get another chance. You gotta do it!"

Their eyes met again. "I know, I know," Trisha agreed. "I just…" she let out a deep breath. "I hate goodbyes; I never say the right thing," Trisha admitted. "We had some great times, Chelle."

Chelle smiled, "Remember that time at school when we snuck into the principle's office and filled his desk with confetti? And then when he opened it the stuff went flying everywhere?" She started laughing.

Trisha started giggling, too. "That was great! And remember that time we let all those bouncy balls loose in the hall? Kids were goin' crazy! God, we were bad!"

"Yea, but remember that time we saved that little boy's cat from the sewer?" Chelle asked.

"Yea, and you confused a rat with the cat!" Trisha sniffled as she tried to hold back her tears. "Well, you better get going. Don't wanna be late for your brother's game." She looked at Rochelle and noticed that she had tears in her eyes as well.

Chelle grabbed Trisha and hugged her tightly as she cried. "I'm gonna miss you. Promise you won't forget about me, ok?"

"I won't. I'll write and call and email whenever I can," Trisha said through her tears. She patted her best friend on the back, stepped aside, and opened the door to the truck.

Rochelle climbed into the truck and looked down at her friend. "Bye, Trisha. Give everybody a hug for me."

Trisha nodded, "I will. And especially McGee because I know you had a crush on him," she giggled. "Bye, Chelle," she whispered as she closed the truck door. She stepped back and watched as her best friend drove away. When Chelle's dad honked the horn twice, Trisha waved back in response. She took a deep breath and wiped her tears away before she felt two strong hands take her by the shoulders. She looked up to find Gibbs standing behind her.

He smiled and knelt down in front of her on one knee. "You gonna be ok, kiddo?" he asked as he rubbed his hands up and down her arms. When she didn't respond, Gibbs pulled her into a hug.

Trisha buried her face in his shoulder. "I'm gonna miss her a lot, Gibbs."

"I know. It'll be ok, shhhhh," he whispered as he rubbed his hand across her back. "You've got me now, ok?"

Trisha sighed and pulled back a little from Gibbs' embrace. She looked at him and smiled. Gibbs put a hand around her neck and kissed her forehead before standing up.

"Hey McGee, come here real quick," Trisha said. She made him get down on one knee before she threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly. Trisha pulled back and kissed him on the cheek before letting him go.

McGee smiled sheepishly. "What was that for?"

"That was from Rochelle," Trisha giggled.

Tony started laughing as he climbed into the driver's seat. "Oooh, lookout Abby, you've got some competition! Looks like McGee has a new girlfriend!"

McGee rolled his eyes, "Shut up, Tony!"

"Get in the truck, Probie!" Tony yelled back.

Kate let Abby and McGee climb into the backseat before turning to Gibbs and shaking her head. "Some things never change," she said with a smile as she climbed in and closed the door.

Ducky got in the passenger's seat as Gibbs climbed into the seat next to Kate. Trisha climbed in after him and shut the door behind her. Gibbs wrapped an arm around both of them. Kate leaned her head against his shoulder and Trisha started playing with the hospital ID bracelet Gibbs still wore on his wrist.

"Hey Gibbs, can I ask you about something that's been bothering me for a while?"

Gibbs looked down at Trisha, "Yea, go ahead, shoot."

Trisha smiled. "How are you planning on getting that boat out of your basement?"

Laughter could be heard eminating from the black Suburban as the NCIS team, along with it's newest member, made their way home to Washington.

END

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A/N: Hope everyone enjoyed this fic. I've already had a few suggestions on writing a sequel, and I have a few ideas. Would anyone be interested? Thanks to all for the reviews! 


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